Workers favor more safety training, digitization of programs: Survey

In a survey on workplace safety, the majority of workers in the construction, industrial, manufacturing and agriculture sectors reported feeling underequipped to perform their jobs safely, according to a report by Foresight Risk and Insurance Services.

Sixty-eight percent of the 600 workers surveyed said they would like to receive better safety training on protocols related to their job, the State of Safety report found.

Workers say safety is a priority throughout their organizations, with more than half of respondents agreeing their company enforces their safety/risk prevention program very strictly, and 76% rating their own safety compliance as “excellent.” However, some workers reported having felt pressured to bend safety rules – most commonly in the agriculture sector.

Four of 10 survey respondents reported having felt pressured to work unsafely in order to complete work faster or to meet a tight deadline. Those working in agriculture were 24% more likely than average to say they have been pressured to work unsafely, according to the survey.

Survey results also indicate workplace incidents and injuries are commonplace, with 29% of employees reporting the most recent workplace incident occurred within the last month.

In reporting safety hazards or incidents, most companies are still using paper-only for safety documentation, according to the report, but more have moved to digital for conducting field safety inspections.

Among the companies that have embraced digitizing safety tools and protocols, the majority of workers reported a positive impact in reducing workplace incidents, and most want to see further digitization.

Seventy-four percent of respondents said there have been fewer safety-related incidents since their company’s safety program went digital. Seven out of 10 workers also believe a digitization of their company’s safety program would improve their personal compliance, the report states.