SAFETY AND ERGONOMICS ARE IMPORTANT
IN THE WAREHOUSE, THE PLANT, AND THE DOCK

As an industry, the warehouse and the loading dock
are less safe than the average workplace.

Figures from both OSHA and the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics show that 5.9 million workers suffered injuries an illness in 1998 (the last year reported) at a fatality of 6.7 cases for every 100 workers. The rate for small business (50 employees or less) is even higher at 8.1 cases for every 100 workers. Materials Handling Equipment is concerned for the safety of your employees and offers the following SAFETY POINTS to help you and your employees. These are
selected articles from our quarterly Safety Points Newsletter. You can subscribe to this free
newsletter by clicking on "subscribe" near the end of the page.

A recent study from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has shown the need to target safety training for younger workers. Inexperience and poor judgment skills place younger workers at risk for injury in the warehouse and the shop floor. If your training budget is limited, target the younger worker and then pair them up with more experienced workers.

We can expect someone to die in a forklift mishap within the next six months in Colorado. Make sure your operators are not "the one"! Be sure to see our information on forklift operator training.

For more information, we provide these additional links
as a courtesy for your safety planning:

CDC.gov - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

MMWR - The Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
A weekly publication of CDC containing data and reports on specific health and safety topics.