Here are 5 Summer Risks Small Businesses face and some ways to deal with them. 

Summer Weather poses unique risks that all small businesses should prepare for. Not only excessive heat, but also natural disasters, storms, insects pose a threat to the health of your employees. How well prepared your business and your employees are for this season determines how well the business will deal with these risks. Here are five types of risks many small businesses deal with every Summer and how best to deal with those risks.

Summer Heat Exhaustion

If you have employees who are required to work out in the elements, it is important to have a plan in place to take care of their physical well-being. No matter where your business is located, your employees will have to deal with extreme heat in some way. Providing them with proper clothing, cold water, and talking about how they deal with the elements.

Summer Sun Exposure

Sun exposure specifically is a difficult risk to address. Some employees may want to get a Summer Tan. Others simply may not take the exposure seriously. The best way to get the employees on board with dealing with sun exposure is to model good behaviors among managers and key employees. If you wear proper clothes to deal with the elements, wear a hat, and apply sunscreen; your employees will be more likely to join in.

Summer Insect Exposure

Most insects are only out during the Summer Months. Insect bites carry life-threatening diseases like lymes disease, malaria, and wes nile.  These are only a few of the diseases that are spread through insect bites. The only way to eliminate this risk is to not go outside. Wearing proper clothes and applying bug spray can go a long way towards limiting the risk your employees face when it comes to insects.

Summer Thunderstorms

Thunderstorms are an enormous risk to your employees throughout the employees. Early in the Summer some areas of the country face tornadoes. Later in the Summer some areas face the risk of Hurricanes. Severe weather is always a concern everywhere. This is especially a risk if you have employees who drive to third party locations as a part of normal business operations. Preparing for these situations and having tight controls on the actions of your employees is the best way to prevent the risks your business faces relating to thunderstorms.

Summer Natural Disasters

Natural Disasters are something small businesses must plan for. Hurricanes are especially common in the late Summer and early Autumn. If your business is located in an area of the country prone to natural disasters, it is important for your business to have a plan for how you are going to take care of your property and the employees who work for you. It is also important to have a contingency plan in place for when a natural disaster occurs. If you do business throughout the United States or Internationally, you will quickly find that business keeps on moving even when your community has experienced a catastrophic event. Having a plan in place for when this occurs can be the difference from a natural disaster being a small hiccup your business has to deal with or the natural disaster becoming a situation that completely pulzerize’s your business and forces it to close.