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Why Is Health And Safety Important In The Workplace? 8 Reasons Why

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Health and Safety checks can often feel like a chore, but taking time to understand how Health and Safety regulations affect your business can be extremely worthwhile and motivating. This post will answer the question ‘why is health and safety important in the workplace?’.

Previous to 1974, the UK Health and Safety requirements, (which existed in response to dangerous factories and mines,) did not offer any legal protection to the public and did not cover technological advancements. A series of serious incidents, predominantly caused by poor building standards, highlighted the need for a more thorough set of regulations. 

An example of this is the James Watt street fire in 1968, where barred windows prevented escape when a fire broke out on the premises; causing 22 workers to lose their lives. Several similar  incidents happened in the 30 years following the civil war, until 1974 when a fire at a chemical plant in Flixborough caused the deaths of 28 people. 

In the same year, the Health and Safety at Work Act was introduced. This legislation is so important because it covers both employment generally, as well as members of the public affected by work activities. 

8 Reasons why is health and safety important in the workplace:

Important health and safety sign in a warehouse.

1 . To ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of all employees at work. 

Putting precautions in place, and using the correct Workplace Health and Safety Products, to ensure the wellbeing of your staff can prevent future illness caused by fatigue, stress or burnout. It also creates a stress-free environment where your team can get on with their work confidently and productively, safe in the knowledge that their health and wellbeing is important. 

2. To ensure the health and safety of any non-employees. 

Aside from this being a legal requirement, the protection of non-employees from any potential hazards your company may generate will serve to establish good public relations. As we all know, bad PR can dramatically affect sales!

3.  To limit the risk of accidents and injury in the workplace. 

We all want our employees to be safe, but it is also worth considering the amount of time a valuable employee would have to take off work if an accident did happen. In most cases, the time you spend conducting a safety check will be less than if an employee were to take time to recover from an accident.

4. To increase workers’ retention. 

It’s as simple as retaining employees is cheaper and easier than hiring new employees. Think of all the training sessions, the interruptions and the loss of productivity hiring new employees takes, let alone the time and money put into the hiring process in itself. 

5. To increase staff morale. 

Studies have shown that increased staff morale maximises the productivity and efficiency of your staff, and in some cases may even prevent depression and heart disease caused by lower morale in the workplace.

6. To limit the risk of damage to work equipment. 

Sinking valuable time and money into replacing damaged equipment isn’t anyone’s ideal day at work. Furthermore, the continued use of damaged equipment can be a safety hazard in itself. Make sure you offer the correct Warehouse Safety Products in your workplace.

7. To reduce the risk of profit loss and reputation.

 A loss of reputation can hinder the trust your clients and investors have in you, can diminish your customer base, and ultimately affect your profit. 

8. To reduce the risk of long term occupational illness or injury. 

In addition to providing sick pay, workers’ compensation and fines can cause companies serious financial stress.

Overall, although conducting frequent checks to ensure you are meeting health and safety requirements can sometimes feel frustrating and lengthy, it is important to remember that it can also help your business grow and boost your profit. 

Fostering a safe environment in the workplace can encourage a culture of health and wellbeing between employees. An environment where employees feel safe can boost morale which can cause workers to be more productive and efficient at work. 

Besides this, a low accident rate at work can foster trust in your company from both your clients and your employees. Safety checks can also prevent your company from losing time and money on avoidable damage control, such as hiring new employees, paying fines, or replacing broken equipment.

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Dear Customer,

 

We would like to thank you for all your support and business during the last 15 months - no one could have foreseen all the events that have unfolded, and we are incredibly proud of how our team have worked tirelessly with our customers and suppliers in navigating these challenging times. 

 

Unfortunately, we have reached a point where we need to share with you the testing circumstances that are besetting our industry. With prices for commodities, such as plastics, cardboard and paper, as well as transport costs rising in a way that we haven’t seen in our 37-year history, our supply partners have found themselves increasingly battling with growing costs and possible shortages.

 

From the start of the pandemic, we have been working closely with our supply partners to try and mitigate any risk of price increases. As an example, we took the decision early on to proactively pre-invest in our stock levels to lock in historic prices. However, with the continued supply & demand mismatches, and increasing industry pressures on the supply chains, we have had to evaluate our position and the impact it is having on our business. It is with great reluctance that we need to apply a temporary economic surcharge of 12% on all orders placed, effective from 22nd July 2021.

 

We pride ourselves on working very hard with our suppliers and customers to build strong, trusted and long-lasting partnerships, so please be assured that we will be reviewing this measure all of the time, and adapting it as we can, when hopefully market conditions become more settled for all of us.

 

We would like to thank you for your continued support and understanding in these unsettling times