What separates a good company from a great one when it comes to health and safety performance? Hint: It is what comes after the main duties that matters. Having a health and safety manual is a great start, and performing inspections, investigations, and meeting with your Joint Health and Safety Committee continues the progress. But many organizations do not take the next step, and that is where the real improvements are made!

Follow-up is the key to success:
• After an inspection, take the time to list possible solutions, assign a responsible person/party, and a target completion date for each action.
• Emergency plans are important, but how do you know they will work in an emergency? Test the system with drills, identify any deficiencies and corrective actions required to improve the plan.
• Daily and formal hazard assessments identify hazards and controls, but it does not end there. Controls must be used in the workplace to prevent an incident. Supervisors should observe the work and make sure controls are in place and being used by their workers.
• Incident or near-miss investigations can seem daunting. Describe the incident, list possible causes, then identify potential solutions for the causes. Finally, identify a responsible person/party and a target date for each solution.

The final step in the process is checking back periodically to ensure items are being completed and documented. Management is demonstrating their commitment to health and safety by ensuring the actionable items are closed out and are effectively controlling the identified hazards and deficiencies.

For the past month, give or take, we have been inundated with the following: “Wash your hands!” “Cough into your elbow!” “Stay home if you’re sick!” “JUST STAY HOME!” “Stay at least 6 feet apart!” In order to prevent the spread of COVID-19, it is necessary to follow these directives, as we do not want our physical health to take a hit. However, it is equally important that we do not allow our mental health to be affected. Humans are social creatures, and right now, we are being asked to stay at home. Staying at home and not seeing anyone is a catalyst for loneliness, and loneliness is bad for our brains.

While mental health is not your fault, it is your responsibility, so here are some tricks and tips to maintaining your mental health while maintaining your distance:

• Exercise – regular exercise releases endorphins and serotonin, which reduces stress and anxiety levels, benefiting your social well-being and brain power!
• Skype/Zoom/Facetime with friends – just because you cannot get together physically, does not mean you cannot hangout virtually!
• Get Outside – social distancing does not mean lock the doors and close the shutters. Go outside – hang out in your back yard or on your balcony. Go for a walk around the block. Fresh air provides energy, and the smell and breathing in of fresh air allows you to feel better. Plus, there is the added benefit of the vitamin D blast from the sun! The fresh air and the vitamin D both combat depressions and other mental health issues. If you are unable to get outside, open a window and breathe in! Remember: If you choose to go on a walk around the block, follow the social-distancing guidelines, and give other people who are out the required space.
• Read a book – allow your mind to escape fully into another world.
• Have some quiet time – this may seem counterproductive, when we already have to isolate. Staying at home, every day, in the evenings, on the weekends, with the same people, no matter how much we love them, can pose a problem. You may find yourself becoming irritated with the people who are constantly around, or perhaps you have become irritating to the people who are around. So, take a break. Go to an empty room and have some alone time.
• Try something new – exercising your brain is as important as exercising your body for your mental health. Challenging your brain with something new makes it stronger!

The most important thing to do is try and reduce your stress as much as possible when it comes to the COVID-19 situation. We are all living in uncertain times, and not much is in our control right now. What we can control is how we are individually dealing with the goings-on. So, remember not to only address your physical health, but your mental health as well. And when this is all over… non-huggers, be prepared to be hugged by all your hugger friends, for now I will have to hug my dog!

Should I Report This?

“I don’t want to get in trouble.”

“I don’t want to affect our WCB rating.”

“Don’t worry, I’m fine!”

These are just a few of the statements that employees may say in the wake of an incident to avoid reporting it. Workers may not want to be in the center of attention, or do not want to make a big deal out of something that may heal within the week, or is cleaned up within the next half hour. However, reporting incidents, whether big or small, is an essential component of any health and safety program.

When people hear the words “we need to report this,” many have flashes of government officials knocking at the door, an OHS inspection, the need for a lawyer, companies being fined, and employees being blamed or punished. What individuals may not realize is that not reporting may result in something much worse. It is up to company management to educate themselves and subsequently their employees to create a safe and accepting culture of incident reporting and accident mitigation.

Incident reporting and investigation is not only a company best practice, it is a legislated requirement under the Alberta Occupational Health and Safety Act. Any incident that causes or has the potential to cause a serious injury to a person must be reported and subsequently investigated. The purpose of the investigation is not to place blame; rather, it is a vital tool for the company to identify dangerous conditions in the workplace, identify actions to correct these conditions, and prevent a similar incident from reoccurring. While one employee might say it is no big deal, it is never worth it to wait around until it is.

While it is all well and good that an incident reporting and investigation program is included within a company Health and Safety Manual, it is essential that it is reinforced and carried out. Company management needs to constantly remind their employees of the need to report all incidents, and ensure that employees are comfortable with reporting any incidents. Incidents are a learning opportunity for everyone involved, and it is beneficial to no one to sweep incidents under the rug. Managers are encouraged to bring up incident reporting in safety meetings, review WCB procedures with employees, draw up safety bulletins, and educate workers on the process associated with internal incident reporting and investigation to create a culture where employees automatically pull out an incident report whenever it is necessary. Employers might want to keep WCB rates down, but incident investigations are necessary to protect employee well-being, and allow a mutually beneficial resolution for all parties involved. Saving dollars every year on a rate statement is not worth having an incident reoccur, this time with a disabling, or potentially fatal outcome.

Finally, it is imperative that workers be made aware of the types of incidents need to be reported. An incident does not only have to mean a person going to the hospital or profusely bleeding. Incidents that need to be reported include near misses, first aid, injury, equipment damage, vehicle incident, security threats, workplace violence, workplace harassment, work refusals, spills and occupational illness. While the severity for each will differ, prevention of a similar incident is always on the table. In particular, near misses are often neglected or treated as a lesser incident. After all, nothing actually happened. What people may not realize is that one small change to a body position may have meant the loss of a limb, a serious head injury, or injury to the next person. Furthermore, a minor injury (ex. a cut on the finger) does not mean it is a “near miss.” Although minor, it is still classified as an incident. It is essential for every employee within a company to treat each incident, whether minor or severe, with the same seriousness and focus.  Remember: when it comes to reporting and investigating incidents, “yes” is always the answer.

Over the last few weeks, most of us have seen major changes to our daily lives which have affected our operations, lifestyles, and routines. Whether you are required to work from home due legislation, company policy, resource availability, children being out of school, or various other reasons, many of us will be navigating the remote work lifestyle for the foreseeable future.

Different people thrive in different environments – this may be a unique opportunity to focus on and develop your individual work skills, or alternatively, may pose a challenge to those who thrive in a fast-paced team environment. No matter the case, the goal of remote work is to maintain business continuity, employee wellness and workforce cohesiveness as much as is manageable. Below are a few suggestions to help us all keep the ball rolling to the best of our abilities:

• Maintain a separation of your workspace and leisure space if possible.
• Maintain hours that work with your personal schedule, which may look very different now than a few short weeks ago and may vary from day to day.
• Ensure you are taking breaks – natural breaks in the day that occur at a workplace do not occur at home.
• Maintain good communication with your team.
• If you are not the only person remote working in your household, hold each other accountable.
• Avoid working in your pyjamas. While that may seem novel for the first few days, there is something about getting dressed and ready for the day that puts you in the mindset for work.

Refer to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety’s Telework/Telecommuting publication for more details and further information that you may find useful:

https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/hsprograms/telework.html

As we navigate this continuously changing, unprecedented and temporary work and life landscape, what have you found work best for you, your household and your colleagues?

*Photo Credit or staff member Alex Entz and her new puppy Murphie, working from home