When winter arrives, so does an increased risk of slips, trips, and falls. But it doesn’t take a holiday miracle to keep employees safe. Simple steps such as assessing floor safety hazards, implementing a thoughtful footwear policy, and judiciously using heaters go a long way toward maintaining a safer workplace.

For three tips to help kick winter safety hazards to the curb, read on…

Tip #1: Assess floors for potential hazards

Icy parking lots. Snow sloughing off work boots and tracked across on facility floors. Warped entry mats. Winter weather tends to deliver unintended, if addressable, hazards to the floor of even the most well-monitored worksites.

To prevent — and address — potential winter safety hazards as quickly as possible, it’s helpful to start with a checklist to assess risk. Review concerns like whether the facility…

• Has mats that lie flat at each point of entry.
• Maintains sufficient snow removal equipment.
• Keeps staircases, hallways, and corridors clean and clear.
• Has slip-resistant floors.

Then, return to this checklist at regular intervals to ensure your environment remains safe.

Important as they are to address, hazards in your facility are only one part of the equation that leads to better workplace safety. Once you’ve reviewed your checklist, the next step is to turn your attention toward human factors. 

Next, let’s look at how employee policies can help keep everyone on site safe.

Tip #2: Implement and enforce a footwear policy  

Anyone who has worn tennis shoes in a snowstorm knows they would have had a more comfortable experience in boots. And even if they didn’t end up injured, they’d have been safer, too. The fact of the matter is, in the workplace, clean, dry, slip-resistant floors can only do so much if employees fail to select appropriate footwear.

The details of an appropriate footwear policy depend on each individual workplace, but may include requirements for specific outsoles and treads, outer materials, or safety-toe reinforcements. In any case, don’t just develop the policy. Take steps to ensure implementation and adherence such as…

• Recording the policy in the company handbook.
• Communicating the policy directly to each individual employee.
• Posting the policy in communal spaces, like breakrooms, throughout the workplace.
• Ensuring employees document that they have received and understand the policy.

Keep in mind that employers are exempt from any requirement to purchase non-specialty, safety-toe protective footwear (i.e., ordinary safety-toe shoes or boots without additional safety attributes) for employees. Assisting employees with the cost of footwear, however, will go a long way to ensuring the footwear policy is followed.

Once the footwear plan has been communicated and all employees have signed off, conduct regular inspections to make sure employees have compliant footwear. 

You may also consider providing supplemental equipment, such as over-the-shoe snow spikes, which help employees work safely in the snow. (Note, however, such equipment must be removed as soon as employees are indoors in order to prevent slippage.)

Tip #3: Sufficiently heat the facility

Our third tip for reducing the hazards of winter weather conditions has the added benefit of promoting a more comfortable environment overall. Simply turn on the heat.

This helps prevent icy conditions from forming in entryways and hallways. What’s more, maintaining a consistent temperature prevents condensation from forming on windows and doors, which can result in slippery patches below the impacted areas.

The more heaters are used, however, the greater the potential for heater-related risks. So once you turn on the heat, be sure to…

• Ensure you have working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.
• Monitor any use of space heaters to make sure they don’t cause potential fire hazards.
• Maintain monthly fire extinguisher inspections.

As with footwear policies and clearing the worksite floor of potential hazards, it’s important to routinely monitor and continually review potential hazards to maintain a safe worksite.

When it comes to maintaining safe workplaces, consistency is key. If sufficient resources are available, it’s helpful to assign an employee to be in charge of regularly assessing the facility to ensure safety measures are up to date. If resources are limited, consider assigning these duties on a rotating basis, or adding them to managerial duties.

In any case, safety isn’t a “set-it-and-forget-it” initiative. So continually review the worksite for potential hazards and regularly audit the policies that help prevent them.