Small Business Safety Plan - An Always Changing Document

Here at Double Action Consulting, we are always striving to bring you the most up-to-date information when creating our small business safety plans. No doubt, Coronavirus is changing the way we think about workplace illness management. At the same time, there is an increasing concern (for some employers) about exposure to needle sticks.  Accordingly, we've updated this section of our Safety Plan, adding additional controls and best practices.       

Also, due to recent updates of the ANSI standard for “Mobile Elevated Work Platforms” (aerial lifts, scissor lifts, etc), we have reworked this section highlighting training requirements, workplace assessments, and rescue plans for workers in personal fall protection.

Changes in the workplace can seem overwhelming for a small business owner or manager. But you don’t have to do it alone! Our Safety Plan templates cover all of this and more - all you need to do is customize the red text to fit your needs and update the table of contents in the Word document! Then you’re ready to print out your own safety plan set to your unique business.

Double Action Safety Plans: What's Different?

Why should you get a small business safety plan from Double Action Consulting? There are certainly options for purchasing safety programs out on the web, but what makes ours unique is that you can view every page of it before you purchase! You can view it and you can go page by page and see what's on every section.

A couple of other things that makes our Program different:

• This is a living document. Our safety plans are in Microsoft Word format. There is a Table of Contents at the beginning and each section of the Plan begins with a header. So when you make a change within the section, you simply need to click on the header on the Table of Contents and it will auto-index with the correct page numbers.

• This is not designed just to be printed out and put on a shelf. The information in the template that you will need to address is easy to find - we’ve put it in a red font to help draw attention to that section. If you do decide to manipulate the document (maybe it’s not applicable or you need to add more information), you simply go back to the Table of Contents and update and it will auto-correct to the new page numbers.

• You can also add more documents like forms to your safety plan - make it fit your own business!

• Our plans are inexpensive and extremely user-friendly. You can always contact us with questions - we’re happy to help you!

Check out the safety plans we have available at Double Action Consulting! We make it easy - the information you need to customize is in a red font, and it is fully adaptable as a Microsoft Word document. Go here for more details!

Safety Plan Requirements

What is required to be in a safety plan? Depending on the size of your small business, the plan may be pretty small and not have a lot in it, or if you had 100-200 employees, your safety plan would be considerably more robust, depending on the scope of the work you do!

Here are some good, general things that every small business safety plan should have in it:

• what to do in emergencies like:

  • fire (where should people go)

  • injuries (is there a hospital nearby)

  • a rally point for employees to meet if they need to evacuate

  • where are the fire extinguishers (and what training is required)

  • what to do in the case of a gas leak or a flood

• what kind of hazards are in your workplace like exposure to blood-borne pathogens?

• where are your first aid kits?

• what are the policies in keeping your bathrooms clean and who is responsible?

• what are your record-keeping policies?

• who’s maintaining records and employee access?

As businesses get larger, sections begin to be added into safety plans as the scope of work increases. Some things that a business owner should think about adding to their safety plan is:

• a section on ladders and safe ladder use

• scaffolds and safe use and storage

• forklifts and the forklift policies

• if any employees wear specialized Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

  • respirators

  • hearing conservation plan for noisy environments

  • exposure to lead, asbestos, or silica, etc.

• fall protection plan

Other general things to think about when building your own safety plan is what is required to be posted on your safety bulletin board? What is required for a safety committee? What is required for safety meetings and workplace safety inspections?

All of this can seem overwhelming for a small business owner or manager. But you don’t have to do it alone! Our Safety Plan templates cover all of this and more - all you need to do is customize the red text to fit your needs and update the table of contents in the Word document! Then you’re all set to print out your own safety plan set to your unique business.

What Business Needs a Safety Plan?

What business needs a safety plan? As a general rule, any business with ten (10) employees or more should have a business plan on file and on location. There may be some exceptions depending on the state you are doing business in, or what type of business you are conducting, but this is a good place to start. Also, if you are in the construction business, there may be other exceptions. But as a general rule, with ten or more employees, you should have something down in writing.

Check out the safety plans we have available at Double Action Consulting! We make it easy - the information you need to customize is in a red font, and it is fully adaptable as a Microsoft Word document. Go here for more details!