Do you know the secret to getting cheaper workers’ compensation insurance? It’s maintaining a safe workplace. In addition to being required by law, providing a safe workplace is good for business. An effective workplace safety program can protect employees from harm and even save lives. It can reduce costly and disruptive injury-related employee absences and work restrictions. And, since fewer workplace injuries means lower premiums, it can also save money.
The first step to developing an effective workplace safety program is identifying the most common causes of the most serious workplace injuries. According to Liberty’s 2019 Workplace Safety Index, these are the top ten causes of disabling injuries at work.
- Overexertion involving outside sources (lifting, pushing, pulling, holding, carrying, etc.)
- Falls on same level (slipping on the floor)
- Struck by object or equipment
- Falls to lower level (falling from ladder, platform, etc.)
- Other exertions or bodily reactions (crawling, bending, reaching, twisting, kneeling, walking, etc.)
- Roadway incidents involving motorized vehicles
- Slip or trip without fall (injured while resisting a fall)
- Caught in or compressed by equipment or objects
- Repetitive motions involving microtasks
- Struck against object or equipment (ex. walking into an open drawer or door)
It’s important to note that the most common causes of serious workplace injuries vary by industry. For example, falls to lower levels are the most common cause of injury in the construction industry. They account for $2.5 billion in losses and represent 25% of the industry’s non-fatal injury cost. In the professional and business services industry, however, falls on the same level are the leading cause of injury. They account for $1.92 billion in losses and represent 24% of the industry’s non-fatal injury cost.
Knowing how and why workplace injuries occur puts employers in a better position to develop and implement their own safety and training programs. This is important because employers have the ability to control their workers’ compensation insurance premiums, for better or worse.
Those with an effective workplace safety program pay less. Those without pay more. Please contact us to learn more about reducing your workers’ compensation insurance premiums by implementing an effective workplace safety program.
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