As an insurance agent I am trained to think of the worst case scenario and plan for it. The insurance business is no question a numbers game which comes down to doing everything you can to prevent accidents from happening in the first place.
Many of you have probably seen the articles about the top 10 most dangerous/deadly jobs in the US or something similar. These are good news worthy jobs, showing high danger statistics the areas we typically look. They all really look fun, like fishermen, Loggers, Farmers and Truck drivers. Ironically all of which have had some sort of reality TV show in the past couple of years.
As an insurance agent, I like to watch these shows but maybe I’m not the super macho man you expect on Axe men or Ice Road Truckers (My dad is a trucker though…. does that help?). I like the exciting life of the office. 75 and Sunny year round, no chance of a 1,000 lb animal trampling me or falling off a boat into sub zero water just so some guy can have a crab cake on his lunch break. I chose a life with the simple “safe” route or so I thought…
Obviously dangerous jobs come with their typical hazards, but lets face it; most of us don’t face a high danger type of work environment on a daily basis. I am talking to you Mr. call center, or bookstore, attorney’s office or online insurance agent. Reality shows help us realize how safe we really are and the great work environments most people get to deal with in the safe controlled environments we are in. The problem is, we get distracted and forget about some of the simple dangers that really do make up a large portion of workplace injuries throughout this country.
Here are a few that are common types of injuries that can be noticed in most everyday jobs:
Motor Vehicle Accidents–
One of the leading causes of workplace related injuries and workers comp claims is from vehicle accidents. This is something that many of us may do from time to time or every day as part of our daily work tasks. This is huge for several reasons; cars go fast, people don’t always wear safety equipment and some people are bad drivers. The worst part about these is you can do everything write as an employer and have the best employee driving and an accident can still happen even if its not your fault.
Slip and Fall-
Anyone who has a business where your customers come into your facility are often worried about slip and fall hazards for their customers. It’s a bad situation, you have a customer injured, they probably wont come back to your business and they will probably cost you money either directly or indirectly. These can be similar hazards for an employee that works for you. This risk can be reduced through policy implementations such as making sure your employees have the proper non-slip shoes, keeping up on everyday housekeeping duties to prevent the slipping areas in the first place and being cautious of potential hazards as well.
Overexertion-
This can be from moving, lifting, and pulling type of activities. Something as simple as an employee lifting a box of files from a shelf could strain their back, shoulders, hip, knee, neck etc each of these potentially turning into thousands of dollars in medical payments and lost wages. Overexertion is often one of the most expensive injuries because it can literally happen to just about anyone.
I work with many businesses everyday to help them lower their workers compensation premiums. I always recommend that you put in a safety plan, drug free workplaces, slip resistant flooring, driver training program, etc.; but the implementation of these programs are what make it successful. I outlined 3 types of workplace related injuries that can happen to most people in most types of business. Consulting with an insurance agent like the ones at The Insurance Shop can help identify some other more specific hazards your company might encounter as well to help keep the workplace safe and minimize the cost of your workers comp insurance.
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