Five Common Dangers In The Office

The workplace has several hazards that need to be addressed. This is where risk assessment comes in. The employer has the responsibility of ensuring the safety of the workers. Assessing the potential risks in the workplace, formulating a sound safety policy, and enhancing you and your employees’ capacity to deal with these risks are just some of the ways of ensuring protection against and avoidance of any untoward incidents.

These are the five most common hazards we encounter while in the workplace and what can be done to prevent accidents and other misfortunes.

1. Confined places - A confined space can be defined as an area or workplace which, “because of its construction, location or contents or the work activity therein, a hazardous gas, vapour, dust or fume or an oxygen-deficient atmosphere may occur.” In occupations which require a person to enter and exit an open or enclosed tank, vat, sewer, pipe, utility vault, and other similar constructions, extra care is needed.

A specially designed training course for employees to be more competent and adapted to a confined working environment will significantly reduce any possibility of accidents by training the employees on entry and working in these confined locations.

2. Explosions and fires - There are workplaces, which as a consequence of the nature of the business, are more prone to explosions and fires than other working environments. Therefore a Fire Safety Protocol is of paramount importance. Employer and employee must have adequate knowledge on fire hazards, fire prevention and procedures.

There should be basic practical skills in fire safety. Fire protection equipment, signage, and diagrams must be provided, as well as the carrying out of fire drills in the workplace.

3. Noise management - In factories where large machineries are used in the manufacture, noise is but an ordinary feature of the workplace. However, the noise should not exceed the “exposure to noise levels that exceed an eight-hour noise equivalent of 85 dB(A) or peak at more than 140 dB(C).”

A onetime too much exposure to noise can result to a temporary loss of hearing, change in hearing, or a ringing in your ears (or tinnitus). However, if the exposure to loud noises is continuous and unavoidable, it can lead to permanent ear ringing, or worse, hearing loss. Therefore, as much as possible, eliminate or tone down loud noises in the workplace or if the noise can be controlled, the company must provide protective hearing gears to its workers.

4. Occupational Injuries - Every day, many workers suffer from traumatic injuries they acquired from their workplaces. Although, most of these are nonfatal, but some are serious enough that the injury necessitates job transfer, various work restrictions, and some time away from their job.

One of these occupational injuries is musculoskeletal injury (MSI). Musculoskeletal injury is described as the “disorders of the bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, muscles and other soft tissues of the body.” MSI usually results because of a prolonged repetitive, awkward, or demanding postures and movements which will take its toll on the body.

5. Electrical hazards in the workplace - Whether you are working with electricity (as an electrician, electrical engineer, line men and other professionals) or just an ordinary employee, the likelihood of electrical hazards is not to be disregarded. The down side is that the ordinary employee is unaware of the potential electrical risk present in the environment, unlike the professionals whose specialty is electricity.

These are just the most common workplace risks. Each employee must be well aware of the risks his/her job entails. Moreover, it is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that the workplace is as safe as possible for the workers. A sound safety plan must be in place to address the possibilities of occurrence of these workplace hazards. Together, employer and employee can come up with the necessary policies and procedures.

Jo is an author and publisher for ‘Phoenix Safety Services Ltd’ (http://www.phoenixsafety.co.uk), a well-known specialist in personalized Health and Safety Training all over UK and Europe. If your company wants you to undergo a Fire Safety Awareness Training or likes to provide you and your fellow employees with the basic helpful knowledge and competence in identifying the fundamental risks of fire and fire prevention procedures then have a look at Phoenix Safety Services Ltd.