We can all agree that employee health and safety should be the top priority of every company. In that sense, every employee plays a role in keeping themselves and everyone else safe. Of course, for professionals who work in human resource development, safety is just one of many responsibilities that fall on their shoulders.
While human resource workers may not specialize in safety, there is no denying that there is considerable overlap between workplace safety and human resource development. Many HR tasks relate either directly or indirectly to safety requirements and protocols within the workplace. We thought it was appropriate to take a closer look at the connection between human resource development workers and workplace safety.
A safe workplace typically starts with proper training, which is one area where human resource development workers play a role. Among the many responsibilities of human resource managers is providing safety training for workers. They are often tasked with explaining safety protocols and emergency plans.
Of course, when a safety expert is required, HR workers will be responsible for finding someone who can give employees more technical training so that they can perform their jobs safely. Workers in human resource development will also be in charge of tracking safety meetings and drills to make sure that employees stay up to date on safety training as required by OSHA.
It’s an old cliche that human resource development is mostly paperwork. However, paperwork as it relates to workplace accidents and OSHA regulations can’t be forgotten or overlooked. HR managers will likely play some role in making sure the right paperwork is submitted to OSHA following an accident and that records of workplace injuries are maintained in an organized way. OSHA can issue citations to companies that don’t keep accurate logs of accidents or submit reports on time. Human resources will ultimately play an important role in preventing these violations by staying on top of all safety-related paperwork.
Communication is perhaps the most overlooked aspect of workplace safety. This just happens to be the area of expertise for those in human resource development. The lines of communication between company managers and those on the frontlines performing the physical labor need to be kept open. Otherwise, important messages regarding safety hazards and the proper protocol to follow don’t get delivered. In some situations, human resources professionals help to create trust between workers and managers so that hazards can be identified and corrected without fear of discipline or other ramifications.
While human resource workers play a role in promoting workplace safety, it should be recognized that they are not safety experts. True safety professionals in the manufacturing industry typically have backgrounds in science and technology and could even have a specialized degree in safety. This usually isn’t the case with those who work in human resource development. This means HR professionals lack the technical training that other workers and safety supervisors have. This tends to limit the extent that human resource employees can dictate the safety policies of a business. Instead, they should be thought of as facilitators in accomplishing the goal of creating a safe workplace.
One way to help human resource development employees as it relates to safety is to implement workplace safety software. Out software can be invaluable in helping HR workers organize everything related to occupational health and safety. This includes scheduling safety training and inspections and improving the communication between workers and employees so that hazards can be recognized and addressed. In the long run, our software can save safety and HR professionals a lot of time and effort while enabling them to promote workplace safety more effectively.
If you want workplace safety to be monitored as effectively as possible, let’s have a conversation about how our software system can help make that happen.