Work Accidents continue to cripple work environments.

Accidents can never be wholly avoided but to a greater extend the risk of their reoccurrences can be minimised through risk assessments and proper steps to help assist the HR department cut or oust any existing accidents which is likely to have a positive impact on the end product fundamentally.

Time and time again we wonder if the proper procedures are being carried out and whether they are up to date, if training is continually mandated then why do we find that the work environment suffers the same issues as before the introduction of the health and safety updates after training.

In most instances it is just ignorance by staff and the “I know it all” attitudes which will then affect effectively everyone who wants to follow the crowd (informal channels) ways of conducting work. While appraisals have proved to be effective to a certain extent in other work environments where the work ethics are not top notch (were the managers cannot lead effectively) their team will defy the entrustment initially invested in them by their assigned team leaders.

The 360 degree feedback system also worked for a while there and in terms of effectiveness it was fantastic. Until employees realised that they should protect each other for job security, while employers also realised the resources used to develop the skills invested in the employees and the expense of rehiring then these two parties worked amicably to deceive the stakeholders to reduce the impact of the negatives of the organisation as long as some sort of profits were being showcased everything seems safe. This research is a true reflection of how honest work instruments developed to help move the organisations positively ahead are being misled, not to say that most organisations are not honest ethically but having discussed with a lot of employees and employers, I am afraid these are the disturbing results.

Accidents affect everyone directly or indirectly within any work environment and working collectively can only yield the best results towards the main objectives of the organisation. Informal structures within any working environment should be quashed and where evident/suspicious reported immediately.  The steps should be made clear for everyone to understand and where anonymity is requested be treated with the highest levels of secrecy because of the repercussions the reporting party might suffer for making such a bold move.

In this research we also noted that most accidents are caused by lack of intensive induction training and massively by the longest serving employees (they believe they know everything because of their long service) therefore the HR department should highlight these factors on their policies/job description/staff handbook so that each and every employee know the proper route/action to take in case they have any queries or complaints. In some cases people chose to go straight to the regulatory boards to whistle blow because of the ignorance and continual reluctance of the supervisors or managers that they would have reported these accidents to with no action taken leaving them with no choice but to take it higher. In most companies this will be a regarded as an extreme measure which can lead to dismissal because they believe their complaints avenues are clear and prefer to deal with these sensitive issues in-house.

Therefore as a precautionary measure it is never too expensive to deal with the underlined issues above, let alone talk to the employees anonymously by outsourcing consultants who are not known by both parties (the employees and employers) to carry out a report on causes of these accidents and from the report work effectively to minimise the potential risks from developing to an actual accident. Regulatory boards carry updated pointers on what to look at or assess to help the well-being of the employees and employers within their work environment. The safety of employees should be considered to be at the top of the organisation priority list because without this assert the organisational objectives will be very difficult to realise therefore making it next to impossible for the organisation to exist at all.

If these measures are carefully executed and systematically updated there will be a few accident cases which means that the budget for law cases against the organisation are reduced. Therefore channelling the funds to other much needed work related projects such as incentive programmes or interesting training sessions which will continue to raise awareness of employees in their field of expertise.