This safety talk should run about five minutes. Some of you may have heard one of our shorter talks – just a few words in the form of a suggestion for making your job safer.
Whatever the case might be, we talk a lot about safety. That’s because it’s important – important not just to you and your family, but to your employer as well.
A large part of our job in safety is to help you to form a safe attitude – to encourage you to want to be safe and to think safety all the time. This all takes place on the job. But off-the-job safety is important too.
What you do on your own time is your own business, but we’re all part of a team and it’s only natural that we’re concerned about each others’ welfare, both on and off the job. At work, you’re part of a safety network that extends into many areas. There are rules and regulations to follow and supervisors who attempt to keep the safety program going.
But off the job, you’re on your own. You can leave your safety glasses off when you’re remodeling the kitchen and you can balance a ladder on a box when you’re painting the peaks on your house. You probably wouldn’t hear a word out of anyone.
However, it would take a pretty immature person to deliberately leave safety at work. Still, there are times when we all get a little careless.
The highways are prime areas of concern for safety away from work. I won’t attempt to go into all the aspects of traffic safety. They’re emphasized most everywhere. But, I certainly caution you to cool it on the road. Be patient getting out of the parking lot and always watch the other driver. To some degree, most of us are do-it-yourselfers around home and this is where a lot of people are injured. You have to be careful when using ladders. Make sure your ladder is safe before climbing it – don’t over-reach or climb too high.
When using tools, pick the right tool for the job. If a tool is in poor condition, don’t use it. Most of you have power tools and you should be sure that they’re properly grounded with a three-pronged plug or double insulation. And stay off wet surfaces when using electric power tools.
The weather is something we can’t do much about. Yet, it affects our safety, so we have to take precautions against it. If it snows, don’t over exert yourself when shoveling. A shovel full of snow weighs more than you may think.
And don’t work too long in the hot sun. This can catch up with you fast, particularly if you’ve worked hard all week at your regular job.
Off-the-job safety should really be second nature if you practice it in earnest at work. So keep an eye out for hazards, whether you’re on the golf course, in your boat or driving your snowmobile. National statistics show that accidents away from work account for 70% of all deaths and 55% of all injuries to workers. So the toll in suffering and the loss in workforce runs high away from the job.
As I said before, you’re all valuable employees and each of you fits into our overall operation and the overall workforce picture in the country. Your contribution to the economy would be difficult to replace if you were injured either on or off the job.
Add this to the fact that as a spouse and parent, you’re priceless to your family, and it’s easy to see why a 24-hour safety effort is necessary.