Winter Workplace Injuries

MC Innovations — Wed, 06 Oct 2021 18:59:59 +0000

Winter Workplace Injuries and Tips to Prevent Them

Old Man Winter is quickly approaching. That means that business owners may need a reminder of what winter weather represents. This is a time of year when workplace injuries tend to rise. This leaves businesses with obstacles to face, as winter presents unique challenges. Winter seasonal risks have the added effect of raising workers’ compensation claims, sometimes to an astonishing level. Employers need to take steps now to prepare for many winter hazards, ensuring a safer workplace to control the expenses associated with occupational insurance claims.

Employee injuries due to cold weather will have a negative impact on daily operations. Workers injured by exposure to cold, slip and fall hazards and dangerous driving conditions often miss work because of their injuries, potentially putting business continuity on hold. Workers’ compensation claims tend to skyrocket, particularly when ice and snow are involved in winter storms. According to Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 20 percent of all workers’ compensation claims are made up slip and fall workplace injuries. With the addition of winter conditions, the likelihood of this type of injury only increases.

Even if you remove slip and fall accidents, workers remain at risk of injury from cold stress and exposure. Individuals who are unable to warm themselves are prone to serious cold-related illnesses and injuries that may lead to permanent tissue damage or even death. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), some of the most common cold-related illnesses include chilblains – a painful inflammation of blood vessels in the skin that causes itching, skin ulcers, swelling, burning, and red patches, trench foot – a serious condition that results from feet being wet for a long period of time, frostbite, and hypothermia.

While OSHA does not have specific standards about working in cold environments, employers have a duty to protect workers from hazards. Employers should have safety initiatives in place prior to winter weather beginning by establishing safety standards, promoting a company culture of workplace safety, and training supervisors and workers to properly prevent, identify and treat cold-related illnesses and injuries seriously.

Employers should create a plan to address all cold-related workplace hazards posed by sudden weather changes which can include temperature drops, snowstorms and wind advisories, among others hazards. When working in cold temperatures is unavoidable, care should be taken to reduce workers’ time exposed and physical demands to below-freezing temperatures by scheduling work for the warmest part of the days or rotating staff in and out for strenuous projects.

Clearing snow and ice from walking surfaces and putting down ice melt soon after a storm can avoid winter-weather-related slips and falls in the workplace. While outside surfaces should be monitored closely, employers should not forget indoor floors can become slippery surfaces. For any wet areas that can’t be immediately addressed, signage should be posted.

Steps to Take After a Cold or Winter-Weather-Related Accident or Injury Occurs

While no one plans to suffer a cold-related injury, it is important to be prepared and act when an accident does occur. It cannot be stated enough how important it is for any injured individuals to remain calm and immediately seek medical attention for their injuries. In extreme cases, an employee may be in shock and not be aware that they have suffered severe injuries until long after the accident occurs. This is one reason it’s important for injured persons to have their ailments properly evaluated, documented, and treated by a medical professional.

Following any injury treatment, employees should file an accident report and a workers’ compensation claim. Under normal circumstances, employees cannot sue their employers for on-the-job injuries, including those caused by cold exposure. Rather, they have the option of filing a claim under workers’ compensation law to recover their losses, including medical bills, lost wages, total and partial disability, and wrongful death benefits. Negligence is not a determining factor in workers’ compensation claims, so regardless of whether the worker or employer was at fault for the injury, benefits can still be provided.

Cold weather injuries, including slips and falls, cold stress and exposure can have devastating effects. These injuries, however, are often preventable with proper precautions. Employees who are regularly exposed to cold weather elements are particularly at risk of serious injury. Employers must set the standard of safety to take measures to protect their staff from cold-related injuries. Workers injured on the job may be able to recover medical and disability benefits, among others, through a workers’ compensation claim. Those injured due to a third party’s negligence may be able to seek legal remedies through a personal injury lawsuit.

The post Winter Workplace Injuries first appeared on MC Innovations.

The post Winter Workplace Injuries appeared first on MC Innovations.

Cost of Accident

MC Innovations — Wed, 03 Apr 2019 09:00:19 +0000

Employee Accidents: Workers Compensation is Just the Beginning

If you think your Workers Compensation program alone will protect you against the high costs of a workplace injury, think again.

In 2018, the National Safety Council reported total cost of workplace injuries at $170.8 billion, or roughly $1000 per worker. However, “the true cost to the nation, employers, and individuals of work-related deaths and injuries is much greater than the cost of workers’ compensation insurance alone,” the report went on to say.

Workplace accidents take their toll both personally and financially—for both the worker and the workplace. On a personal level, injured workers may spend less time with family and friends as they recuperate, miss personal activities, suffer pain, risk medication side effects and, of course, loss of income.

For the employer, every workplace accident results in Workers Compensation expenses, medical bills and sick or disability pay. Because these direct costs are expected, they are easy to calculate and often covered by insurance.

Beyond Workers Compensation

An accident’s indirect costs may be much more damaging for a business; they can include production downtime, equipment repair, training costs for replacement workers, administrative time to handle claims and ensuing paperwork, legal fees, overtime for employees who cover the injured worker’s shifts, OSHA fines, and an increase in the Workers’ Compensation premium.

Additionally, consider the impact of workplace injuries beyond financial considerations: An employee’s accident could affect the morale of co-workers, strain the employer-employee relationship, and, if publicized, damage a business’s reputation in the community and with customers.

These “hidden” costs often take the employer by surprise because they are much higher than the direct costs and, since no single injury is “typical,” they are difficult to estimate and plan for in advance. The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) puts the ratio of indirect to direct costs anywhere from 1:1 to 20:1.

Not convinced of the impact of indirect costs on your bottom line? Take this example from Liberty Mutual: An employee slips on a wet floor and injures their back. The average direct cost for a back sprain is around $10,000, but the indirect costs can be $30,000 to $100,000.

Take Precautions

Workplace injuries are unavoidable, especially in physical work environments such as construction sites or plant floors. While employers can never truly eliminate all workplace risk, they can take steps to mitigate accidents and injuries, through implementing administrative and engineering controls and requiring (and providing) PPE where necessary. Of course, for these tactics to succeed, they must be communicated to employees and then enforced. This could require a cultural shift that employs practical, methodical, and ongoing efforts on the part of management.

Given the costs of a typical slip and fall, it’s inexplicable that some companies back-burner safety measures due to cost-reduction initiatives. The best money a company can spend may be on PPE, training, safety programs, and similar tools. While those costs may seem excessive at the time, saving tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in indirect costs after a single employee accident makes the safety precautions well worth the investment. According to the National Safety Council, Injury Facts 2014 Edition, studies have shown that $1.00 invested in injury prevention returns between $2.00 and $6.00 to the employer.

Given the high — and often hidden — costs of accidents, employers must be diligent in acting to prevent those incidents through training, signage, and adequate safety equipment, as well as putting in place robust Workers Compensation and property casualty insurance programs.

The post Cost of Accident first appeared on MC Innovations.

The post Cost of Accident appeared first on MC Innovations.

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Winter Workplace Injuries