Why Your Company Needs An Emergency Action Plan

Transcription

1 Why Your Company Needs An Emergency Action Plan

2 Executive Summary As an employer, your company is responsible for providing a safe workplace for your employees. The best way to do that is to have an emergency ac2on plan in place and train your employees on how to implement the plan in the event of an emergency of any kind. PuBng together a comprehensive emergency ac2on plan that deals with issues specific to your worksite is not difficult. However, draeing a plan isn t enough to ensure the safety of your employees. When an evacua2on or medical assistance is necessary, you will need responsible, trained individuals who can supervise and coordinate ac2vi2es to ensure a safe and successful evacua2on or provide the appropriate care. Almost every business is required to have an emergency ac2on plan. Fortunately, there is an easy way to develop and implement one. It simply involves par2cipa2ng in a training and cer2fica2on course and applying what you learned to your workplace. What is an Emergency Action Plan, and Why Do You Need One? According to the Occupa2onal Safety & Health Administra2on (OSHA), an Emergency Ac2on Plan (ERP) is a wriqen document that is designed to facilitate and organize employer and employee ac2on during workplace emergencies. A well-developed emergency plan and proper employee training such that employees understand their roles and responsibili2es within the plan will result in fewer and less severe employee injuries and less structural damage to the facility during emergencies. A poorly prepared plan or having no plan at all will likely lead to a disorganized evacua2on or emergency response, resul2ng in confusion, injury, and property damage. OSHA Requires an Emergency Action Plan For your company to maintain compliance with 29 CFR which regulates EAPs, you must have a wriqen plan, and that plan must include the following elements: Minimum Requirements: The EAP must be in wri2ng, kept in the workplace, and available to employees for review. However, an employer with 10 or fewer employees may communicate the plan orally to employees. The EAP must provide for a means of repor2ng fires and other emergencies. The EAP must detail evacua2on procedures and emergency escape route assignments. The EAP must detail procedures for employees who remain to operate cri2cal opera2ons before they evacuate The EAP must provide a means for accoun2ng for all employees aeer an emergency evacua2on has been completed. The EAP must detail rescue and medical du2es for employees performing them. 1

3 The EAP must provide the names of job 2tles of persons who can be contacted Employee Alarm System: An employer must have and maintain an employee alarm system. The employee alarm system must use a dis2nc2ve signal for each purpose and comply with the applicable OSHA requirements. Training: An employer must designate and train employees to assist in a safe and orderly evacua2on of other employees. Review of the Plan: An employer must review the EAP with each employee covered by the plan: When the EAP is developed or the employee is assigned ini2ally to a job When the employee s responsibili2es under the EAP change When the EAP is changed Recent OSHA Fines for Non-Compliance In an era when workplace safety is becoming more strictly enforced, compliance with OSHA mandates regarding ERPs is increasingly important, regardless of the type of business. That s because non-compliance can result in steep penal2es as evidenced by a sample of just a few cases: Haasbach, LLC was fined a total $555,000 for serious and willful OSHA viola2ons, $210,000 of which was related to the lack of an emergency ac2on plan, failure to assess hazards, and the lack of proper training. Bos2k, Inc. was fined a total of $476,000 for serious and willful OSHA viola2ons, $56,000 of which was related to the lack of an emergency ac2on plan and the lack of proper training. CVS Pharmacy was fined a total of $40,000 due to the lack of an emergency ac2on plan at just one of its stores. CVS had previously been fined for the same viola2on in two other states. New England Confec2onery Company was fined a total of $42,000 for serious OSHA viola2ons, $21,000 of which was related to the lack of an emergency ac2on plan and the lack of proper training. In addi2on to penal2es, OSHA requires the Cita2on and No2fica2on of Penalty to be posted in a prominent place at or near the loca2on of the viola2on. When a no2ce of serious or willful viola2ons is posted in full view, it helps create or confirm the impression that your workplace is unsafe. This is a serious blow to the reputa2on of your business. 2

4 An Emergency Preparedness Certification Program is Essential Even if avoiding OSHA fines and penal2es wasn t an issue, you would s2ll want to keep your employees as safe as possible. The best way to do that is to par2cipate in an emergency preparedness cer2fica2on program. While there may be many educa2on alterna2ves available, all programs are not equal in terms of how they prepare your company for emergencies. The op2mum program provides comprehensive, wraparound training that covers a wide range of topics that are specifically designed to help prevent injury, save lives, and increase the stability of your organiza2on. When deciding on a cer2fica2on program, be sure to select a program with highly-qualified instructors that offers courses in the following categories. Preparedness Education The primary goal of a cer2fica2on program is to increase emergency preparedness in your workplace. Being prepared for a wide range of emergencies puts your employees in the posi2on of being responsible for their own safety and the safety of their co-workers. Internal safety, and dealing with natural disasters, aren t your only concerns. According to the U.S. State Department, there has been a 35% increase in terror aqacks worldwide. This drama2c increase has led the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to recommend that organiza2ons in the U.S. reduce vulnerability of cri2cal infrastructure and key resources, essen2al leadership, and major events to terrorist aqacks and other hazards. Make sure that the cer2fica2on program you choose prepares your en2re organiza2on for a domes2c terrorist aqack. CPR & First Aid Training Do you know what your employees would do if someone had a life-threatening incident on the job such as a heart aqack or stroke? If you don t have a quick answer to this ques2on, and ques2ons like this, then your company needs a CPR and first aid course. The right cer2fica2on program will offer this training in addi2on to emergency preparedness. 3

5 OSHA Compliance A cer2fica2on program shows OSHA that you have taken the required steps to stay in compliance with their ERP mandate. Addi2onally, the program should take your company through the full risk-management process or help you conduct a risk assessment on a specific area of your workplace. How an Emergency Preparedness Certification Program Benefits Your Company An emergency preparedness cer2fica2on program is essen2al not just for the safety of your employees. It also helps keep your company stable in the event of an emergency. And, it helps your company stay in compliance with OSHA regula2ons. A Workforce That Is Better Prepared for Emergencies The Department of Labor has reported that every day, more than 12 workers die on the job. Addi2onally, every year, more that 4.1 million workers suffer a serious job related injury. Before injuries occur or disaster strikes, your workforce needs to be prepared. An emergency preparedness cer2fica2on program will make your employees ready to deal effec2vely with lifethreatening incidents. Being prepared has other benefits beyond reducing injuries and loss of life. A constant state of preparedness also limits your company s exposure to negligence liability and costly insurance claims. A Workforce That Is Better Prepared for Terrorist Attacks In recent years, we have seen that foreign and domes2c terrorists can aqack at any place and at any 2me. It s a mistake to think that your company is safe from aqack. Having employees who are trained how to respond in case of a terrorist aqack will save lives within your workplace and the surrounding area. A Workforce That Is Better Prepared for Active Shooters Sadly, we live in the era of ac2ve shooters. According to the FBI, incidents of ac2ve shooters have soared since Now, we are experiencing an average of 20 ac2ve shooter incidents 4

6 each year. And, as you know, these incidents can occur in schools, in public places, and in the workplace. 5

7 Not all emergency preparedness cer2fica2on programs will educate your employees about what to do when there is an ac2ve shooter in the building or in the immediate area of your workplace. In addi2on to the other safety training men2oned earlier, the best training and cer2fica2on program for your company will offer life-saving ac2ve shooter training. Corporate Resilience After an Emergency Company opera2ons and processes can be fragile. This is especially true when companies don t have the infrastructure in place to deal with disrup2ons of day-to-day opera2ons. AEer par2cipa2ng in an emergency preparedness cer2fica2on program, you have the ability to empower your employees to help your company recover quickly and resume daily func2ons. This increase in organiza2onal stability limits down2me and saves your company money. Improved Reputation for Safety Having an ERP, and comple2ng an emergency preparedness cer2fica2on program, does more than make your workplace safer. These things will also help your company earn a reputa2on for safety. This increases employee morale and makes it easier to find and retain the best employees. OSHA Compliance Documentation Even though having an ERP is the right thing to do to keep your employees safe and your company resilient, you must also be concerned with OSHA compliance. With companies paying higher fines than ever before, it is important than ever to stay in compliance. Par2cipa2ng in an emergency preparedness cer2fica2on program helps you fulfill OSHA s training requirement. Upon comple2on of the program, your company will receive OSHAcompliant training documents for your records. 6

8 Get the AlertCertified Advantage The AlertCer2fied Na2onal Emergency Preparedness Cer2fica2on Program covers all of the crucial safety informa2on that every employer and employee should know. Our breakthrough na2onal cer2fica2on program makes training, maintaining, and ensuring preparedness easy. Addi2onally, our cer2fica2on program helps your company stay in compliance with OSHA requirements, avoid high fines, reduce your company s liability for negligence, establish a reputa2on for safety, and protect your employees in the event of domes2c terrorism or an ac2ve shooter. Simply put, you can t afford not to par2cipate in our Na2onal Emergency Preparedness Cer2fica2on Program. To learn more about how AlertCer2fied can make your workplace safer and more resilient, visit AlertCernied.com or call LEARN to request a free safety evalua2on or schedule a training class. 7

9 8 A White Paper from AlertCer2fied