The workplace industries are a powerhouse of the country that is responsible for its financial and economic growth, and they are the main source of food for many households. The Workplaces are the unfortunate places where most of the hazards happen that result in injuries and even the deaths of the workers. The most commonly noted incidents in the industries are cuts, lacerations, and wounds such as punctures and fractures, which can lead to the injury that employees need to pay for the rest of their lives. Moreover, it destroys the reputation of the industry in the global market, impacting the country's overall growth.
It was recorded by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2019 that 89,730 major injuries occurred in the US industry sectors, and around 15,380 cases occurred in the manufacturing department. The number of workplace hazards is surprisingly increasing, and these need to be fixed to maintain the reputation and save the lives of many employees. This blog will capture the whys to avoid such accidents and provide strategies to overcome the issue by understanding its causes.
The reasons to avoid cuts and punctures at workplaces
These incidents may sound minor, but this varies with the intensity of the wounds, making their impact far-reaching. The lives of the employees must be saved and protected as these cuts, lacerations, and puncture wounds are harmful, threatening their lives. The importance of prioritizing to avoid such incidents,
1. Health Risks
These injuries severely provoke health risks. Many infections and complications can result when a person encounters cuts with sharp objects or gets exposed to pointed nails or needles. These can penetrate the wounds deeper and cause infections, which are likely to be spread if not cured immediately.
On a higher-level tendon, severe laceration damages the tissues deeply and requires surgery or stitches that will cost enough. Other than that, these injuries are causing health risks, which can cause productivity among the workers to cease, affecting the overall workplace productivity.
2. Economic Costs
Notably, these incidents are not just a threat to health but also to the financial situation of the workers and the workplace. Occupational Safety Health Administration standards have been given the regulation in which the fines are mentioned that need to be paid to the industries if they experience an employer’s death or injuries. Moreover, OSHA has noted that it costs around $45,931 for medical checkups and treatments if exposed to the injuries.
These incidents cause costly medical treatment and first aid attention along with the loss of workforce and equipment in the industries. This situation brings financial challenges for small businesses, especially since long-term operations are being affected by it.
3. Regulatory Consequences
These continuous incidents negatively impact the total recordable incident rate of the industry, which is measured annually. This disrupts the overall reputation of the industry in the long term, causing its downfall. Moreover, the regulatory consequences are done in these situations by the regulatory bodies of OSHA to charge penalties and fines.
Professions at the risk of workplace injuries;
Understandably, there are certain risks at every job, but as specific to the cuts and puncture wounds, there are few professions that are at higher risk of becoming victims of these injuries.
1. Meatpacking and Butchering
At the butchering shops, employees and workers are handling the sharp knives that can cut deep if not used with the protection and properly. These professions have recorded that 8 workers out of 100 experience workplace injuries annually.
2. Culinary Arts
The chefs and other restaurant workers have the chance to experience work-related cuts and puncture wounds as they work with knives and blenders most of the time. Almost 20% of restaurant work and kitchen-related Injuries include lacerations or cuts.
3. Construction
Construction site incidents are the most common workplace hazards according to the OSHA. These workers are exposed to sharp tools, nails, broken pieces, ladders, and many electronic machinery. This is the most hazardous industry, reporting 5,486 fatalities in 2022.
4. Retail
In retail businesses, workers are given the proper training to use boxes of cutters and other sharp tools to avoid incidents. Around 10% of workers experience injuries in this retailing industry annually.
5. Healthcare
Lastly, in the healthcare industry, in this department, people use objects like needles, chemicals, and a stick that lead to serious infections. Around 385,000 needle stick injuries are reported by hospitals in the United States annually.
Top 5 ways to avoid workplace cuts and puncture wounds
1. Proper training for the workers
OSHA has launched many courses for the employees and employers to register and get the proper training to use the tools and machinery in the construction sites to promote workplace safety. By getting the safe training, workers will be efficient enough to use the tools safely without getting caught to the severe injuries and incidents. Thus, employees must be given detailed and effective training carefully, using the established protocols.
2. Maintaining the condition of tools
The regulatory inspection of the tools is also necessary to avoid injuries, as sharp tools with rust tend to cause infection. Moreover, if the blades aren’t in good condition, they will require more force to use, which might cause a cut. Thus, regular maintenance, cleaning, and replacement of the tools should be scheduled to promote workplace safety. Moreover, these regular inspections minimize the risks of incidents caused by faulty equipment.
3. utilization of the personal protective equipment;
Osha has made it obligatory to use PPE while performing any task in the workplace that poses risks. Proper guidance on the use of PPE, such as gloves, goggles, sleeves, and whole fits, must be given to the employees. Moreover, the regular inspection of these PPE is also necessary, as it will help in replacements beforehand. Cut resident gloves have been shown effective in protecting the hand injuries in 70% of cases.
4. workplace tidiness and a safe environment
As in workplaces, many unseen sharp objects are placed in some places or on the floor thus, the tidiness and clean environment reduce the chances of getting cuts due to these objects. In the cleanness procedure, sharp objects are placed in the safe storage, each compartment should be parted, and the blades need to be placed with the covers.
5. Promote a Safety-First Culture
Employees should be focused on themselves to foster an environment that promotes their own safety and well-being as well. They should promote a “stay aware to stay safe” reminder to predict the risk before happening to reduce it. Employees should be rewarded for such behavior to increase the likelihood of it happening again.
Summing up
The cuts, punctures, wounds, and lacerations should never be considered minor incidents as they can cause serious health and financial risks by diminishing the company’s reputation and eroding morale. Industries are advised to use strategies and training courses to avoid such mishaps and ensure the workplace safety of the workers, who are the pillars of the industries and the country. By implementing the methods mentioned above, businesses can reduce workplace injuries and foster a safe environment for development.