EMPLOYEE SAFETY INCENTIVES

Transcription

1 EMPLOYEE SAFETY INCENTIVES A Cmprehensive Guide t Develping an Effective Plan Prvided by: Van Meter Insurance 1240 Fair Way Street Bwling Green, KY Tel: This guide is merely a guideline. It is nt meant t be exhaustive nr be cnstrued as legal advice. It des nt address all ptential cmpliance issues with Federal, State, lcal OSHA r any ther regulatry agency standards. Cnsult yur licensed Cmmercial Prperty and Casualty representative at Van Meter Insurance r legal cunsel t address pssible cmpliance requirements.

2 WHERE TO BEGIN The fllwing guide will help yu cnstruct an effective Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram and create meaningful safety and health incentive parameters fr emplyees. It includes backgrund statistics t supprt the prgram, steps t take befre executin, hw t manage the prgram and implementatin recmmendatins. Step 1: Knw the Facts Supprting yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram with evidence that it will help save mney is the best way t cnvince upper management t get n bard. Obviusly, injured emplyees drive up cmpany csts in the frm f lst wrk days and cmpensatin csts. Studies clearly demnstrate that emplyees wh are ff wrk because f injury fr mre than 16 weeks seldm return t the wrk frce, and cmpanies get stuck paying hundreds f thusands f dllars each year in unnecessary csts. An Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram can help make emplyees mre aware f health and safety hazards and als mre inclined t fllw prtcl t earn incentives. In fact, Emplyee Incentive Prgrams are knwn t imprve perfrmance and mrale n an individual as well as team level. Step 2: Gather Data Befre yu institute a prgram, research yur cmpany culture t understand what current emplyee attitudes are tward injury, illness and their wrk envirnment. That way, after yu create an fficial Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram, it will be easier t evaluate and determine whether there has been a psitive mindset shift. Get t knw yur cmpany culture at all levels and frm a range f perspectives. Visit wrksites and talk t emplyees t understand hw yur current Safety Prgram r lack theref functins. Develp a needs assessment t determine hw much wrk yu need t d t shift cmpany culture and practice t yur new incentive-based Safety Prgram. Step 3: Demnstrate a Cmmitment t Health and Safety Make sure all levels f emplyees recgnize that the prgram is designed t reduce health and safety vilatins in the wrkplace and prmte a safe wrk envirnment. With this, it is still crucial t reprt injuries in a timely manner after they ccur. The Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram is in n way designed t prmte failure t reprt injuries. Everyne frm upper management t hurly emplyees shuld understand the gals, purpse and backgrund n the prgram. There is n use taking large strides t enact a prgram if management des nt supprt and recgnize the need. These elements are the fundatin and supprt fr yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram. Take plenty f time fr these steps befre mving n t create yur prgram. EMPLOYEE SAFETY INCENTIVE PROGRAM ELEMENTS Steps 4 thrugh 7 f this guide will g straight int yur written Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram, as they are the elements that will help yu take actin and establish a plan. Step 4: Create Gals State s purpse in creating the prgram and emphasize management s cmmitment t making it wrk. Keep it psitive, but be sure emplyees understand the Emplyee 2 E M P L O Y E E S A F E T Y I N C E N T I V E P R O G R A M G U I D E

3 Safety Incentive Prgram is a serius initiative. This is als the place in yur written prgram t define what type f incentives yu ffer yur prgram can revlve arund persnal incentives, department incentives r cmpany-wide incentives. Example Gal Statement: s Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram is in place t prmte a safe and healthy wrk envirnment, reduce injury and illness and cmmend individuals/departments/entire cmpany fr uphlding high safety standards. The gal is t reward individuals/departments/entire cmpany fr maintaining and imprving health and safety in the wrkplace f. Because ur emplyees are s valuable, we have bth a Return t Wrk Prgram, which is designed t accelerate return t wrk by addressing physical and emtinal limitatins, and an Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram, which is designed t prevent injury and illness frm ccurring in the first place. Step 5: Create an Emplyee Safety Team and Define its Respnsibilities An Emplyee Safety Team is crucial t the prgram s success because it prvides leadership, sets expectatins fr injuries and illnesses, acts as a cmmunicatin channel between all invlved parties, determines hw the incentive-based prgram will be maintained and ensures the Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram is being administered crrectly. This team shuld cnsist f a representative frm each f the fllwing areas, and yu may want t use these rle descriptins directly in yur written prgram: - Senir Management Ensures implementatin; prmtes and supprts the prgram - Vcatinal Rehabilitatin Specialist** Serves as expert n physical and psychscial aspects f disability, can testify in curt as vcatinal expert, understands jb analysis and physical capacities frms, supervises Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram and Return t Wrk Prgram administratin - Wrkers Cmpensatin Prfessinal (either an in-huse representative r smene frm yur insurance cmpany r TPA) Prvides medical infrmatin, prblem-slving skills and general supprt t help prevent injuries and prvide insight when injuries d ccur - Supervisr(s) - Unin - Panel Physicians Directly supprts their wrkers by recrding incentive milestnes, such as reaching a gal, and setbacks, such as nt uphlding safety standards, facilitating cmmunicatin and ensuring the emplyees cntinue t prmptly reprt injuries when they d ccur Prmtes the Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram t unin membership; advcates fr emplyees and assists in return t wrk planning fr specific emplyees when injuries d ccur Prepares a medical treatment plan that is safe, prmtes early return t wrk and keeps s incentive prgram in mind - Human Resurces Department Crdinates with Emplyee Safety Prgram Manager n emplyee requirements t receive incentives, emplyee benefits, wages, Family Medical Leave and wrkers cmpensatin issues when injuries d ccur **the best candidate fr team lead r Return t Wrk Prgram Manager 3 E M P L O Y E E S A F E T Y I N C E N T I V E P R O G R A M G U I D E

4 Step 6: Develp a Flw Chart Outlining the Incentive Prcess A crucial part f the Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram is the prcess and steps invlved in administratin. A gd flw chart will eliminate cnfusin abut the prgram and identify prper actins fr all levels f emplyees, and this flw chart shuld serve as yur actin plan. Determine hw yu will administer incentives whether it s n an individual, department r entire cmpany basis. Decide hw yur incentive system will wrk n a credits and debits pint system, pint values f varius safety advances and setbacks etc. It is als imprtant t define what yur actual awards will be fr meeting the established criteria f yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram. This will vary depending n whether yu administer incentives n an individual, department r a cmpany-wide basis. Awards shuld be varied, and nt always related t mney as cash prizes can be easily frgtten. Depending n yur budget, pssible tangible incentives include: Vacatin days/additinal paid time ff Crprate apparel Gift cards Small trphies, pins, ribbns, certificates r ther awards f recgnitin Sprting event r cncert tickets Department r cmpany-wide picnics Step 7: Create a Cmmunicatin and Educatin Plan T make yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram a success, yu shuld have full cperatin with all parties invlved. This includes the emplyee, his r her supervisr, unin fficials, medical prviders and wrkers cmpensatin prfessinals (when injuries d ccur). If any f these parties is nt fully cmmitted t the incentive prgram, yur success will be limited. T maximize the prgram s cmmunicatin effrts: - Prvide written prgram descriptins and definitins make these items readily available, accessible and readable. - Keep jb descriptins and jb analyses n file fr each emplyee in case he r she ever becmes injured. - Review yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram with emplyees during new hire rientatin and peridically thrughut the year. - Als review yur Return t Wrk Prgram with emplyees during new hire rientatin and peridically thrughut the year. - Prvide ne-n-ne sessins with emplyees t reiterate expectatins and incentives. - When injuries d ccur, reiterate the need t reprt them. Prvide nen-ne sessins with injured emplyees in attempt t prevent future injuries. Make sure emplyees understand that it is a requirement t reprt injuries prmptly, regardless f hw it affects the credits and debits system f the Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram. FINAL STEPS 4 E M P L O Y E E S A F E T Y I N C E N T I V E P R O G R A M G U I D E

5 The last step in implementing an Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram is t include a way t measure yur prgress and distribute yur plan. Steps 8 and 9 will ffer suggestins n hw yu can manage and distribute yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram. Step 8: Recrdkeeping The best way t measure the success f yur prgram is t cllect injury incidence and frequency data, as well as incentive incidence and frequency data. Financial savings may be difficult t quantify, but ne thing yu can d is track the mney yu save n an individual basis fr each injured emplyee and each emplyee wh meets an incentive. Als, it will be helpful t keep an Incentive Pints Database. Use this t chart: - The number f emplyees assigned t each duty - Pint values f criteria that must be met fr pint t be awarded (mst likely varying by duty and psitin f emplyee) - The average duratin f duty assignments and average injury incidence in each area - The percent f emplyees filing new claims each mnth due t injuries - The percent f emplyees meeting gals and criteria fr incentives Step 9: Distribute the Plan After yu create yur written Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram using these guidelines, distribute it t emplyees at every level. When distributing yur written Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram, in additin t all f the steps included in this guide, be sure t include: - Yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Plicy, which shuld have a sectin t be signed, dated, returned t Human Resurces and filed fr each emplyee - The Attaining Incentives Flw Chart - Materials addressing the need t reprt injuries when they ccur, and the cnsequences fr failing t reprt them. - Other relevant material that may be helpful t emplyees experiencing wrk-related injuries r illness, including wrkers cmpensatin infrmatin Yu might als cnsider hlding a meeting t build supprt fr the prgram and s that emplyees can ask questins. Revisit the Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram annually t re-evaluate the written prcedures and plicies and analyze its success. If yu have further questins abut writing r implementing yur Emplyee Safety Incentive Prgram, Van Meter Insurance can assist yu. This guide is merely a guideline. It is nt meant t be exhaustive nr be cnstrued as legal advice. It des nt address all ptential cmpliance issues with Federal, State, lcal OSHA r any ther regulatry agency standards. Cnsult yur licensed Cmmercial Prperty and Casualty representative at Van Meter Insurance r legal cunsel t address pssible cmpliance requirements Zywave, Inc. All rights reserved. 5 E M P L O Y E E S A F E T Y I N C E N T I V E P R O G R A M G U I D E