Keep Your Employees Safe And You Will Be Safe Too

It may sound a bit cynical to suggest that keeping employees safe is a matter of self-interest, but the world of business is a harsh reality. Of course, no one wants to see someone they work with injured. On a personal level, that is distressing. However, it can also be disastrous on a financial level too. Some people have said that American society is becoming too litigious. In fact, the United States is the most litigious country on earth as about 2.2% of the gross domestic product, or about $310 billion, is spent on tort litigation each year. That is obviously a lot of money, but the more distressing fact is that about half of that is spent on legal fees. Unless your small business is a legal firm (which it probably isn’t), that is not good. The fact is that with so many people feeling comfortable going to court to prove some sort of damage has been done to them, either emotional, physical, or financial, the risks are pretty great. That is why you need to be able to defend yourself. Investing in professional liability insurance is a great idea at this point, as is registering your business as a limited liability company (LLC). This is designed to ensure that in the event that your company is sued, your personal wealth is not subject to legal proceedings. Registering your company in this way will not guarantee every time, in every case, that you are not accused of being personally liable for whatever incident took place, but it is a good start.

However, prevention is better than the cure, which is why you should also spend time and money trying to stop accidents before they happen. Some of these precautions are mandated by law. If, for instance, your company works with hazardous materials, you will be subject to the OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS), which mandates that you set up a hazard communication program. If this is already beginning to sound stressful and like an awful lot of paperwork, you should think about getting the relevant sds book. They will tell you in detail how to comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s expectations. This is important for the reasons cited above. You do not want someone to be injured because that is a nasty experience, but you also do not want to be sued in case it does happen. Being prepared is the best advice.

However, not every possible incident could be as dramatic as hazardous materials causing a problem. If you do not provide your employees with a comfortable place to work, you will once again invite the possibility of legal action. In the OSH Act of 1970, section 5, there is what is known as the General Duty Clause. It is quite vague, but it could be interpreted to mean that if you do not have your office heated to a sufficient temperature such that your employees are comfortable working there, you could be contravening the law. While it is important that you are aware of these things as an employer, it is in your best interests anyway since happy employees are 12% more productive.