Protecting Employees with Risk Management

Robert has been one of your most trusted employees for fifteen years. He is extremely hard working, dedicated to the organization and consistently goes above and beyond to make the company better.

While delegating tasks to your warehouse staff, Robert loses his footing and falls six feet from a platform to the floor below. He is badly hurt, spending months in recovery and is unable to return to work.

What do you tell his family? How do you replace him? What are the costs?

Unfortunately, accidents and situations like this happen far too often. Work-related injuries and illnesses devastate families and businesses with extreme financial and non-financial consequences.

In past entries, we’ve looked at employee safety-related topics like stress, liquor liability, the H1N1 flu virus and more. Today, we’re exploring workplace hazards and their associated costs and effects.

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How Stress Can Hurt Your Business

While it may not always be at the forefront of our thinking on risk management, work-related stress can be extremely costly if not properly monitored and controlled. As with most risk management activities, being proactive is not only better for your employees, but it’s also better for your bottom line. Being proactive costs a lot less than being reactive.

What are the costs associated with employee stress?

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Office Holiday Parties and Liquor Liability

It’s that time of year again. The shopping days are counting down, decorations are going up, and holiday gatherings are starting to fill the calendar.

Hosting holiday celebrations for your employees can be a great way to come together, to show appreciation for their contribution throughout the year, and to unwind and celebrate the holidays. But it is important as an employer to minimize the risks associated with consuming alcohol at holiday get-togethers.

Employers in many jurisdictions have been held liable for damages resulting from employee intoxication at a company event. To prevent losses and to limit liability related to alcohol consumption at work-related events, employers should implement an Alcohol Policy.

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H1N1: What Now?

No matter where you are and what industry you work in, you probably have been affected in some way by the H1N1 virus and all the personal and business disruptions that have occurred. We’re beginning to see reports that we’ve seen the worst of the virus and that we’re on the upswing out of its grasp. Other experts are reporting that we are nowhere near to being at the end of this and that a third wave will hit this winter. With such uncertainty, many risk managers are erring on the side of caution.

Economic Impacts

There has also been some debate surrounding the effect swine flu will have on the economy. There are some indications that the virus has had little effect on the US economy. Government simulations have shown its impact as ‘reasonable and manageable’. However, it is anticipated that there could be between a 1 and 4.25-percent decrease in the country’s GDP.

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Following the H1N1 Influenza Outbreak

The spread of the H1N1 virus and its accompanying media coverage has been quite a phenomenal thing to follow over the past few weeks. The momentum that the infection built in a very short period of time is overshadowed only by how quick and how global the human response has been. The number of fatalities linked to H1N1 cases appear to be slowing and medical response to cases are improving.  Past influenza outbreaks similar to this one tend to peter out in North America in the Spring and Summer while they often increase in scope and severity in the Southern Hemisphere (their winter).  The fear is that they will make resurgence in North America in the Fall as a stronger and perhaps more resilient virus.  Now is the time to prepare, not just for this virus, but use this as a wakeup call to make your organization prepared to deal with a Pandemic.

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