Quick Safety Tips: Prepare for Winter

Helpful Tips to Prevent Wintertime Slips, Trips, Falls:

• Adequately plow all lots throughout the snowstorm and ensure the lots are clear. Salting / sanding of the lots should be done in-sequence with the plowing of snow for best results. Pre-treating the lots with sand / salt can help as well.
• Remember to adequately sand or salt walkways. The appearance of a clear path may cause people to proceed with less caution.
• Remove snow that may have been plowed into a parking space during emergency snow removal.
• Remove excess snow around curbs. Accumulation of snow in a parking area next to a curb has the potential for creating serious injuries.
• Do not allow ice to accumulate in parking lots. Deal with snow and ice immediately.
• Mop all entrances and exits regularly to prevent water accumulation.
• Make sure that handrails on stairways and walkways are secure. If someone fell and grabbed the rail, it would be exceptionally dangerous if the railing was not secure.
• Point out the obvious. Post signs of caution in areas that are hazardous.

Wintertime Safety Tips for Employees:

• Require employees to wear anti-slip footwear (meaning no leather- or plastic-soled shoes). High heels should not be worn outdoors during winter weather. When walking across ice or snow, be sure to take short, flat steps.
• Don’t run. Slowing down will decrease the chances of a slip and fall.
• When entering a building, remember to shake your umbrella outside and clean your footwear thoroughly on the floor mats or carpet.
• Once inside a building, don’t walk too fast and avoid making sharp changes in directions.

(Note:) Even the most well-designed safety programs ultimately will be ineffective without the active participation and input of employees. In fact, a 2016 Gallup study revealed that employers with high levels of employee engagement had 70 percent fewer safety incidents than those with lower levels of engagement.