How to Instill a Culture of Safety Through Your Safety Manuals

By Cass Jacoby, RCS Reporter. 

Trent Cotney offers expert insight into updating safety manuals and what it telegraphs to your employees and OSHA inspector.  

Within the industry, May is a month that places an emphasis on roofing safety. Continue your dedication to safety and embrace the best practices for the health of your employees with this RLW that discusses why strong safety manuals are key to a safer workplace.  

Trent Cotney of Adams and Reese has helped guide and mentor the creation of hundreds of safety manuals and is a well-respected speaker on safety and OSHA initiatives not only in roofing but the construction industry as a whole. Join him and Heidi J. Ellsworth for a timely and important discussion on the best practices for keeping safety manuals. 

“We all want our employees to go home safe and sound every night, right? I mean, that's always the goal. And I've always said that every penny that you spend on safety is a penny well spent,” says Trent. “But it's also very important as an employer that you understand how to mitigate risks for purposes of your liability. And what I'm really going to hit it on is what rights you have as an employer. The things that you need to know, and the things that you need to understand.” 

Trent argues that roofing contractors can save thousands of dollars in fines and lost productivity, as well as better retain their workers, by taking the time to properly update safety manuals annually and gain a deeper understanding of factors that will change safety policies. 

“One of the key things that you need to do is go back to your office and make sure that you start back filling your documentation, because that's going to be the difference in being able to successfully defend against an OSHA inspection,” says Trent. “The first thing that everybody needs, and we all know this, is you need a good safety manual and you need to make sure that it is consistently updated.” 

Trent goes over specific changes in OSHA regulations and what to pay extra attention to as you update your safety manuals. Knowing what issues to keep tabs on and what sections to emphasize as you update your safety manual for the year is crucial to helping your employees return back to their families safely. As Trent says, “If you want to instill that you've got a culture of safety, you have got to be able to explain what your safety protocols are downstream.” 

Read, Listen or Watch the full episode to learn more about upcoming safety measures and why it is crucial you update your safety manual. 

Learn more about Adams & Reese in their Coffee Shop directory or visit adamsandreese.com.

The information contained in this article is for general educational information only. This information does not constitute legal advice, is not intended to constitute legal advice, nor should it be relied upon as legal advice for your specific factual pattern or situation.