Basic Office Safety Tips

Basic Office Safety Tips

Slips and falls are the most frequent cause of injuries in the workplace, and people working in an office are twice as likely to be injured by falling than people who are working in other types of workplaces. Keeping alert and thinking ahead can help minimize the risk.

Some Common Sense
Use basic common sense in your daily comportment around the office. That means:

Sit upright in your chair, with your feet touching the floor when you’re working at your desk. Before sitting down, look to make sure your chair is beneath you and hasn’t rolled away.

Look where you’re going whenever you’re walking around the office.

If you’ve got to carry anything from one place to another, don’t stack things up so high that you can’t see directly in front of you.

Walk, don’t run.

Go slowly if the floor is wet or otherwise slippery.

Don’t read while walking.
Always hold the handrail when using stairs.
When carrying boxes, use the elevator if available.

Only open one drawer in a filing cabinet at a time to keep it from tipping over.
Close desk or file cabinet drawers before walking away so others don’t walk into them.

Store supplies inside of cabinets or bookcases, and place heavier items in the lower drawers or shelves.

Immediately wipe up spilled beverages, water tracked in by wet shoes or drippings from umbrellas. Ask a custodian to do the cleaning if you don’t have time to do it yourself.

Obey your building’s (no) smoking rules, and don’t throw matches, ashes or cigarette butts into regular trash.

Keep the floors and aisles clear of electrical cords. Use surge protectors and cable ties to manage the wiring.

Refrain from eating or drinking at a computer station. Spills and crumbs could get into the keyboard and cause malfunctions.

Don’t touch electrical outlets, plugs nor switches with wet hands.