Gone are the days when a business could be unsafe and cause injuries and illnesses in their employees and not pay the price. Nowadays lawsuits for negligence are common and the attorneys that pursue them work on a contingency basis. No insurance company will cover a dangerous business, and without insurance, a business license is impossible. Add to that, with social media, online reviews, and everything else on the internet, employers that don’t take great care of their people don’t last long. So the best way to handle this type of situation is with proper training and education of all of your supervisors and employees as well. OSHA, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, offers plenty of help, here are some tips you can use.
Every Occupation Has Its Hazards, You’d Be Surprised
You might think that lots of occupations, or entire industries, have few or no hazards, accidents, or job-related illnesses, but you’d be wrong. Some jobs are full of hazards and on the job injuries, construction, roofing, landscaping, labor, welding, mechanics, and even restaurants are accidents waiting to happen. But, there are also lots of hazardous chemicals, back strains, and repetitive motion injuries in offices, retail stores, and flower delivery as well. There is almost no industry that is immune to some kind of hazard, and that’s why OSHA was developed, to find the problems and fix, eliminate, or prevent as many as possible.
Now, nearly everyone that uses any kind of cleaner needs to wear gloves all the time. Hairdressers no longer get coloring, gels, shampoos, bleaches, or other chemicals on their hands. Plus, the kid carrying the groceries to your car most likely wears a preventative back brace to protect his spine. These are all the result of careful assessments that have been made by OSHA, with the help of employees, supervisors, insurance companies, and medical statistics. The goal is to keep people working, injury-free, for a lifetime with the use of education, safety equipment, and better products that aren’t dangerous.
The Wardrobe, Hair, And Makeup Industry Is No Exception
The movie, TV show, performance, and show business industry has its own OSHA manual and standards to help keep those employees safe as well. Starting with the workers that fix hair, many of the dies, tints, sprays, gels, and other products are hazardous to get on your hands, especially, daily. They are also even more dangerous to breath, so, the proper masks need to be worn along with gloves.
Many makeups come with dusting pads, sparkles, creams and other products that shouldn’t be touched repeatedly or breathed. And that may also be the case for the actors wearing the products as well. However, many types of exposures are far worse if the exposure is all hours of the day, and every day, as opposed to a couple of times per week. Each type of makeup or other product must be examined and the danger level assessed so that the proper protection for the workers is used and then made standard for the industry. Products that are just unsafe, and there have been many over the years, will be banned from use.
Many States Now Require The Makeup, Wardrobe, and Hair Workers To Be Certified
OSHA offers training courses that focus on each individual industry to help those involved know what to look for, how to protect themselves, what to do in case of a spill, and who to report improper uses to. This has helped prevent many long-term work-related illnesses due to chronic breathing of toxic dusts, or exposure to certain colorants in the products used.
There is an OSHA 10-hour course that is primarily for workers to assist them in knowing what to look for, what to avoid, how to be protected, and what to do in an emergency. The OSHA 30-hour course is for supervisors, those that have the responsibility of the safety of several employees. They will also be taught how to create evacuation plans for their business in case of a fire or other catastrophe. Also, how to use a fire extinguisher and on what kinds of fires they’ll be effective. All of the courses are usually available both online and in person in order to be convenient for everyone.
By making sure that all employees are adequately protected in every workplace, OSHA has considerably reduced the number on at work deaths. At the same time, injuries and work related illnesses have also declined as well. Maybe in the future all work related hazards will be eliminated through proper training, education, prevention, and awareness.