The investigation process should follow certain guidelines to ensure appropriate action is taken. First, analyze the data and find the root cause of the incident. Next, inform all employees about the incident. Management should fight the any urge to sweep the incident under the rug. Each employee needs to learn from the incident — no matter how minor it seems — so similar incidents can be avoided in the future. Once employees are properly notified, then implement the recommendations from the investigation and follow up to ensure the recommended steps were taken.

A firm's commitment to investigation should go well beyond incidents, encompassing every near miss as well. Too often, firms don't investigate if everything turned out okay. But firms continually need to ask the difficult questions when something goes awry in order to prevent near misses from becoming future incidents.

Job Site Analysis and Safety Training
If a firm has an accident, OSHA will want proof of how employee training is conducted. Training can be a "Tool Box Talk" or formal training in a classroom environment, or job site training. All training must be documented by at least a signed attendance roster and any written tests and/or a trainer's observation report kept on file. Products, such as the Worker's Safety Checklist and Worker Safety Cards offered through the Tilt-Up Concrete Association, exist to serve this function.

Because firms are required to protect employees from known hazards, companies must train employees how to recognize how to protect themselves from those hazards. So, where do you begin? Start by looking at your injury and incidents for the last few years; this is a list of areas you need to focus on. For most companies, fall protection is always high on the list. Fortunately, the Tilt-Up contractor minimizes the risk of fall protection through the very process of construction where most, if not all, work is conducted on the slab.

Safety Orientation for New Employees
Communicating your company's safety culture should begin with each new employee. Make safety the first impression of your company by including your company's safety director in the interview process. What's more, showing your firm's commitment to safety in the interview process can be an excellent recruiting tactic. Candidates will be more interested in working for firms that are committed to their well-being.