Like many other small or medium sized enterprises at the moment, you may still be feeling less than confident about the future of your company. After all, the continuing crisis in the Eurozone area, the inevitable hikes in energy tariffs and the persistent reluctance of consumers to spend their hard-earned cash is making the UK’s economic recovery far slower than it needs to be.
This is obviously less than welcome news when you are trying to steer your own small or medium sized company to a safe port. Indeed, there are only so many cutbacks you can make before your fundamental operations start being compromised and your overall ability to compete becomes nullified.
Unsurprisingly, there will be those in your company who will propagate the theory that ‘drastic times call for drastic measures’. These individuals will argue that the company’s finances should be focused on key areas and not on facets of the business which have no immediate effect on quarterly profits.
In essence they will be advising you to ‘cut a few corners’.
However, whilst this may make sense on paper, it really is not the way to go in actuality.
After all, the first thing that typically gets compromised when corners are cut is safety. And, if you fail to uphold the necessary safety standards throughout your firm, you will not only increase the risk of tragic accidents occurring to your employees; you will also leave your company open to potentially ruinous legal action.
This is likely to be particularly valid if you employ workers who carry out tasks at height. After all, aerial workers are often only a slip or trip away from falling and seriously injuring themselves so they are one category of workers whose safety really shouldn’t be compromised in any way.
Fortunately, there are fall protection measures available which are not only very effective to those working at height; they are also extremely affordable as well. Indeed, inexpensive measures such as guardrails and cable systems will ensure your aerial workers will always have industry standard prevention and protection available to them whenever they ascend your premises to carry out their tasks.
However, the effectiveness of these measures can only be optimised if they are complemented with relevant training. Therefore, every individual within your company who works at height really must receive suitable training.
As well as supplying high-quality physical safety measures and fall arrest apparatus, we here at Heightsafe are also able to offer training courses which can provide your aerial workers with the specialist education they need to stay safe and work well whilst they are carrying out their duties.
In addition to boosting your employees’ confidence and performance, this kind of training will also provide you with great peace of mind, as your company will be less likely to face the potentially ruinous consequences which so often accompany serious or tragic accidents.
And that is more than reason enough to avoid cutting corners.