HEALTHYHORIZONS
Health and safety yields impressive returns UNLOCK THE TRUE VALUE OF INVESTING IN YOUR PEOPLE
BY JENNIFER COCCIMIGLIO WORKPLACE SAFETY & PREVENTION SERVICES AS TECHNOLOGY continues to evolve and AI advancements transform how we work, Canadian businesses are contemplating how best to harness their benefits. Investments in innovative tools and machinery that will improve production and grow the business seem like an obvious win. However, investment in health and safety may be an even bigger win. “If you aren’t currently investing in the health and safety of your employees, you’re leaving your business vulnerable,” says Kristin Hoffman, health and safety consultant with Workplace Safety and Prevention Services (WSPS). “You really can’t afford to overlook it.” A workplace injury or fatality will devastate any company — especially a small business with five or 10 employees. “When a small business loses even one employee, it can have a significant impact on productivity and the ability to meet contractual obligations,” says Hoffman. In the midst of coping with a
heartbreaking tragedy, your business has to find a way to move forward. What is the cost of an injury? In 2015, a Canadian landscaping company was fined $100,000 after a worker suffered a fatal fall in a parking lot. In 2019, another landscaping company was fined $45,000 after a worker fell off an extension ladder. The worker was using a chainsaw to cut branches from a tree when the ladder fell, also injuring another worker standing on the ground. In 2024, after a 20-year-old worker died after contacting an electrical wire while trimming a hedge, his manager was charged with criminal negligence causing death. When tragedies like these occur, fines and legal fees are just the beginning of the financial pressure a company may experience. According to a report from the Association of Workers Compensation Boards of Canada, the average cost of a lost-time injury claim
was $47,238 in 2019. Indirect costs, such as lost productivity and recruiting and training new employees, was estimated to be at least
twice the amount of direct costs. “Work will be delayed while an
investigation takes place. A new employee may need to be recruited and trained. The company’s reputation may be negatively impacted. And all of this is happening while employee morale reaches a low point,” says Hoffman. “It can be very difficult for a business to recover from something like this.” What’s your health and safety investment? The Institute for Work and Health, an Ontario-based organization that specializes in occupational health and safety research, studied the return on investment (ROI) for Ontario businesses when they invest in health and safety. They took the average health and safety expenditures across
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