How Construction Companies Can Help to Keep Their Workers Safe

Construction is one of the most dangerous lines of work, so it should be every business manager’s priority to keep their employees safe whilst they are on site. However, there are so many different factors to consider which can make keeping track of every safety check difficult. To help employers with this dilemma and ensure the workforce is protected, we have written this article which provides a helpful checklist of all the different things that they need to account for. 

If you are the leader of a construction company and want to keep your employees safe, then read on to find out more.

Gritting for Winter

Construction work can become significantly more dangerous during the wintertime as the ground becomes slick with black ice. This could put your employees at real risk because they might fall over whilst working up high. What’s more, your equipment could also slide on the ice, putting those around in harm’s way. Therefore, employers should hire road gritting contractors for their construction sites during the wintertime. 

Gritting companies will usually arrive at the premises in the early hours of the morning, before employees have arrived, and lay grit down on the ground.

Gritting Works

, for instance, keep an eye on the weather forecast and will grit the night before if you agree that it’s required. This will then melt away the ice and provide extra grip for the next day. 

Personal Protective Equipment

Employers should also supply their staff members with all the appropriate gear they need to stay safe whilst working the job. For starters, helmets are a must. These will protect your employees from severe head injuries that can be caused by falling over or construction materials. Ear protection is also very important. Pedestrians can hear construction work from miles away – imagine what damage this could be doing to your workers. Things like safety goggles, knee pads and high-visibility jackets are a requirement, too. The second these things become damaged; you need to replace them. Otherwise,

you will be culpable

if your worker hurts themselves on the job.

Health & Safety Training

You should never underestimate the importance of

health and safety training

. Whilst your employees might find this yawn-inducing, they need this education. If they don’t have the correct knowledge or understanding, they could easily put themselves and others at risk. We encourage employers to regularly put their staff through health and safety training. It’s also important to frequently review how well they are putting their training into practice.

Maintaining Equipment

One of the most dangerous things about working in construction is the equipment. That’s exactly why employers need to audit their equipment, making sure it is being properly maintained. This includes the scaffolding, tools and machines your workers will be using. We cannot overstate how dangerous a faulty piece of equipment is, so employers should make this a top priority to check.

These are some things that construction companies need to account for to keep their workers safe. Employers cannot be laissez-faire in this regard because they will be responsible for any harm that is done.