Are you dealing with safety issues in your electrical contracting business and wondering how best to address them?
While you are well aware of the risks associated with your industry and want to fine-tune your risk management program, sometimes your employees throw a spanner in the works.
In an industry with over 800,000 employees and impressive market size of $ 174bn, the US electrician contractor industry continues to show promise.
By fine-tuning your safety program, you not only up your business’s reputation as being safety compliant. Your insurance premiums will reflect your safety efforts too. Want to know more? Read these great safety tips compiled especially for your industry.
5 Great safety tips for your electrician contractor business
1. Establish clear safety programs
As an electrician contractor business owner, it is your responsibility to create a safety program for your contractors. This should include policies that dictate the best safety practices for on-site work.
To get an idea of what to include in your safety program, you should look at the National Electrical Contractors Association’s (NECA) standing safety policy called Safety Programs and Safe Workers.
With basic safety principles like an emphasis on safety training for workers, it is an excellent guide for creating a safety program for the first time.
2. Hire experienced safety professionals as supervisors
According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), younger and less experienced contractors are more likely to die due to electrical accidents. As such, it is always advisable to hire highly experienced supervisors, especially when it comes to safety issues.
Such supervisors will always keep an eye out for the less experienced contractors and ensure that they fulfil their tasks effectively and safely. Inexperienced supervisors may tolerate a lot of unacceptable behavior and expose your business to a ton of risk and liability, especially when it comes to Workers Compensation insurance claims.
As such, Workers Compensation should be one of the insurances that your business prioritizes. Mandatory in most US states, it provides critical coverage for your employees if they are injured in the course of working for your business. In addition to paying medical costs the insurance also provides wage replacement.
3. Always perform adequate safety planning
Before you start any project, you should perform adequate safety planning. Ideally, you should start with a project hazard analysis that lays out general hazards, site contact information, and necessary documentation.
Moreover, remember to consult with the safety director and project manager about site safety requirements.
4. Conduct regular job site safety inspections
To stay on top of your safety game, ensure that your supervisors and workers regularly perform safety inspections. Supervisors should particularly be adept in these tasks, giving your employees proper guidance. Carry out safety inspections daily, and ensure detailed documentation is maintained.
5. Emphasize proper accident reporting
When an accident occurs, administer first aid and call emergency response. You or your supervisor should fill in an accident report form and carry out an investigation.
Also, if an OSHA compliance officer visits the job site, you will be required to provide an employee or management member to accompany them during the inspection. Your company safety representative may be required to verify the compliance officer’s credentials, document the inspection, and ensure the inspection is limited to the accident.
Ensure your insurance is up to date
The better your safety measures, the better your insurance premiums. Most insurance companies use EMR, which stands for Experience Modifier Rate. A high EMR not only drives your premiums up but impacts on your profits as most clients take your rating into account on bids.
You certainly don’t need to pay for insurance coverage your business does not require, but you don’t want to be underinsured either. Speak to your insurance agent to find the right insurance balance for your business.
