Near misses. Hazardous Conditions. We all see them. The barricade that’s not properly set up, causing an employee to stumble. The cabinet door that’s left open in the breakroom for a coworker to nearly bang his head. A friend who is momentarily distracted by her phone while driving to a job site. These types of incidents can be prevented, but it takes a sustained and focused effort.
At CTEH, we are proud to have a culture of safety. We’ve made it our mission to protect our people, partners, and the communities we serve. And, every day, our team members—from the top down—reinforce that strong commitment with our actions. Paul Hart, CSP, CIH, our Director of Health and Safety Services, explains more:
What role does communication play in helping ensure a safe workplace for your employees?
Communication is essential, but it’s also extremely challenging. We utilize every resource at our disposal, including in-person meetings, calls, emails, and, since COVID-19, digital platforms. From experience, we’ve learned the most effective tool is supervisor-led safety briefings. This allows employees to talk through concerns and, as a group, address any potential issues.
Why did CTEH decide to pursue internal “SMART” safety goals (e.g., accountability)?
We established these goals to reaffirm our long-standing commitment to safety. We can be asked to deploy to a response at a moment’s notice. This means our team must be 100% in compliance with training requirements. With these internal metrics as a guide, we’ve found employees are even more incentivized to complete their assigned number of training courses and contribute to our overall safety program.
Tell us more about CTEH’s in-house occupational health clinics.
We respond to complex and challenging situations. Our nurses and doctors help ensure our people are medically capable and cleared to perform this work. They also deliver pertinent health information. Take COVID-19 and their 24/7 nurse hotline as an example. Soon, they’ll gear up for flu season. With this illness and COVID-19, their efforts are more important than ever to help protect our workforce and partners.
CTEH is heavily focused on safety reporting. Why?
Our ultimate goal is to avoid injuries and illnesses. Safety reporting alerts us to any potentially unsafe conditions or behaviors—in the offices, on job sites, or even at employees’ homes—so we can address them before someone gets hurt. We encourage our employees to regularly submit these reports, which we then share with the company at the end of each week to promote continuous learning. Safety reporting empowers employees to be responsible for and take part in creating a safer workplace.
Have questions about creating a culture of safety in your workplace? Contact us at webquestion@cteh.com.
