You are responsible for the items in the checklists below – but you can also designate or assign one of your employees to monitor some of these items to ensure that the best safety and health practices are followed within your unit.
Physical injury prevention checklist
- Train employees regularly on the health and safety aspects of their jobs
- Require and enforce the use of personal protective equipment and clothing provided where needed (goggles, face shields, gloves, aprons, hard hats, respirators, ear plugs, etc.)
- Make sure worksites are clean and orderly, walking surfaces properly repaired, stairways fixed with guardrails, and aisles and exits free of obstructions
- Conduct regular inspections of your workplace, looking for poorly designed workstations, electrical cords that someone could trip over, overloaded electrical outlets, top-heavy bookcases, etc.
- Post emergency telephone numbers where they can be readily located
- Make sure a first aid kit is easily accessible, and contains items needed for the type of injury likely to happen in your unit
- Identify someone in your department who knows about first aid and CPR
- Keep regularly maintained fire extinguishers readily available
Psychological health and wellness checklist
- Express empathy and concern for the health of your employees by encouraging a healthy work/life balance
- Understand your employees’ behaviors well enough to notice changes; then if warranted, notify the appropriate department (your unit director, HR Administration, WorkWell Center, etc.)
- If you have concerns about an employee, consultation is available from the Center for Work and Family life or other campus resources (like the Office of Equity and Diversity)
- Communicate to your staff when new policies or procedures affect them or their work
- When appropriate, solicit ideas from your staff and make sure they know their input will be welcomed – then communicate to them how their input was helpful
- Keep up with the offerings provided by campus resources such as the Center for Work and Family Life
- Understand the many ways that change in the workplace can affect employees
- Clearly define staff members’ roles and responsibilities, and the duties expected of them; use the Workday performance management process to provide regular feedback