How To Create a Winter Emergency Preparedness Plan
As the winter months approach, it is crucial to ensure that workplaces prepare for potential emergencies caused by the weather. This blog examines how to recognize winter hazards and develop a comprehensive emergency plan for the upcoming winter.
Assess Potential Winter Risks in the Workplace
Winter hazards will be different at every workplace, but the process of assessing them remains the same. Assessing winter risks in the workplace involves identifying potential hazards and evaluating their impact on the workplace. Start the assessment by conducting a walk-through of your facility. We recommend documenting hazards in writing, including their locations. Also, consider high-traffic areas, outdoor workstations (if they exist), and building heating and cooling infrastructure placement. Once you finish the assessment, determine the potential impacts of the hazards. Consider if the risk associated with the potential hazard is high, medium, or low, and begin creating your plan.
Ensure Effective Winter Preparations for Your Facility
This step of your emergency plan will center on the hazards identified during the initial assessment. We recommend beginning with high-risk areas and going from there. For a workplace where driving is part of your workday, consider whether the outing is necessary, especially on a blustery winter day. If your workplace identified icy entranceways, preparations could include implementing snow-melt mats or heated walkways to reduce slip hazards. Once implemented, seek employee feedback on the effectiveness of the preparations and adjust if necessary.
Winter Safety Training and Awareness
Incorporating winter safety protocols into your routine training sessions helps spread awareness among employees, ensuring they are equipped to respond to emergencies. We recommend utilizing training sessions to discuss your workplace’s winter emergency preparedness plan, clearly outline communication protocols, and answer employee questions. Ensuring everyone knows their role in maintaining a safe and healthy work environment during winter will empower your employees.
Develop an Effective Strategy for Communication During an Emergency
It is vital to detail how you will communicate your workplace’s emergency preparedness plan to employees. Share the plan so employees know how to use it during a winter emergency. Below are items to include to ensure timely and accurate information sharing with employees:
Designated communication channels: Determine one centralized hub to share information. Many organizations utilize intranet or cloud services.
Employee responsibilities: Ensure your plan outlines employee roles and responsibilities during emergencies. When an emergency occurs, employees need to know their roles.
Alternate communication methods: Identify alternative communication methods in case primary systems fail. For example, consider this situation: Your workplace outsources winter plowing, and the company that clears snow and ice away from your entrances is unable to come in. Is it sufficient to send an update via your designated communication channel (e.g., email)? In this case, we recommend using an alternate system in addition to your designated channel (e.g., a caution sign at every entrance) for the highest level of safety. Another option is designating a member of your staff to be a ‘traffic control person’ to talk to workers as they arrive at work.
By implementing effective strategies, organizations can ensure seamless communication during winter emergencies. This will minimize confusion and ensure employee safety and business continuity.
Emergency winter preparedness is a critical component of a resilient and safe workplace. By assessing winter risks, ensuring effective winter preparations, incorporating safety training and awareness, and developing effective strategies for communication, your workplace can be winter ready. As winter approaches, think about your preventative steps in case of an emergency. If your workplace requires assistance in developing a winter safety policy, please reach out to info@hspinc.ca.
