Recently, we got a call at DTS from a small business that had an employee get injured on the job. It wasn’t a major injury, but it was serious enough that the employee went to a local urgent care to get treatment. The injury was then reported to the insurance company that held the small business’s workers’ compensation policy.
Fortunately, the employee was taken care of and is doing fine, but the insurance company then required that the small business create and implement a thorough safety training program. If they didn’t do this in a timely manner, the insurance company would drop them. And if that were to happen, the business would likely have a very difficult time finding another insurance company to provide them with workers’ compensation insurance at an affordable price, since they have a recent claim on their record.
This small business definitely made the right call in contacting us! At DTS, we are experts at developing comprehensive safety programs for small businesses in a variety of industries, including construction, home services, manufacturing, and more.
We worked closely with the business owner to identify all of the areas that would require safety training. We took note of any potential hazards and came up with ways to minimize them. We created detailed training manuals and also put together a simple way for the employer to document when the trainings were completed by employees. Throughout the process, we worked with the insurance company to make sure all of their requirements were being met. We did all of this within the timeframe set by the insurance company.
Lest you think that this situation is unusual and your small business would never be required by an insurance company to produce a safety training program, let us tell you that it’s not unusual at all! In fact, some insurance companies ask to see a safety training program before they will even agree to issue a workers’ compensation policy for businesses in certain industuries.
If you own or manage a company that works with hazardous materials, heavy machinery, power tools, or requires your workers to engage in any type of potentially dangerous work, you need a safety training program in place! This isn’t just to keep your insurance company and OSHA from penalizing you—it’s also to keep your employees safe! In addition, an effective safety program can ensure that your equipment is used and maintained properly, which will likely extend its functional life.
Being proactive in this area is the best course of action. In other words, don’t wait until you are mandated to put a safety training program in place. Contact us at DTS to learn more about the safety training programs we develop and to inquire about having one created for your small business. The program we put together for your business will be specific, detailed, and effective—not generic or “cookie cutter” in any way. You’ll get the personalized service our company is known for, but still at a competitive price.