Health & Safety First: PreZero's Zero-Accident Strategy
At PreZero, the safety and well-being of our employees are our top priorities. Despite daily precautions, they are still frequently exposed to various hazards in the workplace. What really causes accidents at work? And what measures do we take to prevent them? Find out in this article.
Safety Is Not Optional — It's a Pillar of Our Values
No matter who we are or where we are in the world, we all share the universal desire for our loved ones to return home from work safe and sound. That's why ensuring the safety of our employees and earning the trust of their families by actively mitigating any potential hazards is essential to how we operate at PreZero. The most important job of our employees is to come home safely. Hence, our motto is world over: Your number one task is getting home safely.
Many of our team members are in operational positions where they face unique conditions and dangers. Working in such areas as collection, sorting, loading, and recycling of valuable materials, as well as in industrial cleaning and transportation, requires a comprehensive, well-thought-out safety strategy. That's why preventing accidents is one of the cornerstones of our culture. Following our Zero-Accident Strategy, we're committed to enhancing and advancing our Health & Safety standards, especially in these critical areas, ensuring our colleagues work in optimal conditions and feel valued and respected.
How Do Accidents in the Workplace Happen?
Workplace accidents can arise from a multitude of factors, often interconnected in one way or another. Take, for example, waste collection. We’ve all been there: you’re in your car, driving to work all stressed out because you left at the last second, and now you need a string of green lights to make it on time. All of a sudden, a garbage truck pulls up ahead and stops. The worker hops off and begins emptying the trash bins, while you’re stuck waiting, with no way around the truck. Just your luck!
Some drivers quickly lose their patience, start honking, rush the garbage collectors, and in doing so, stress them out. Not to mention, these workers provide a valuable service to society and deserve our respect. Impatient behavior not only demonstrates disrespect for these professionals at work but also heightens the risk of accidents. On top of this, inattentive pedestrians and adverse weather conditions like rain, ice, and extreme heat only add to the dangers these workers are exposed to.
At PreZero, our goal is to protect all our employees as best we can from the risks inherent in their work environments. Generally speaking, the causes of accidents can be categorized into the following:
External Factors
- Poor weather conditions
- Inattention on the part of others
- External stressors or pressure that affects our employees
Intrinsic Factors
- Stress and time constraints
- Distraction
- Established habits and routines that lead to overconfidence or lapses in concentration
Preventive Measures: The Zero-Accident Strategy
To ensure the safety of our employees so that they return home safe and sound every day, we have launched the global Zero-Accident Strategy. At the heart of this initiative is an extensive set of measures designed to comprehensively enhance safety in the workplace and elevate current standards. This strategy allows us to address potential accidents not just reactively, but in a constructive and proactive manner. The following measures are part of the Zero-Accident Strategy:
1. Hazard Analysis
We conduct hazard analyses at both national and international levels, creating valuable synergies in the process.
2. International Network
By sharing experiences and best practices from all the countries in which we operate, we are able to accelerate our progress in ensuring safety for our employees.
3. Development of Our Leadership Teams
We foster alignment on safety standards across our leadership teams and encourage open communication about conditions that ensure safe working environments.
4. Teambuilding
We are committed to boosting team spirit, recognizing that a cohesive and well-functioning team is a prerequisite for safe and reliable operations. This also fosters a stronger sense of responsibility at every level of the organization.
5. Safety experts
Continuous education is key to progressive development. That's why we ensure our safety experts receive ongoing training to stay ahead.
6. Increasing Vigilance
We implement a variety of measures, including signage, stickers, regular meetings and training, as well as instructional videos, to alert staff to potential dangers and hazardous areas in the workplace.
7. Employee Assistance Program
Our Employee Assistance Program (EAP), which will soon be available for all PreZero employees in the 11 countries we operate in, offers staff free access to professionals to discuss psychological, financial, and legal issues that impact their mental health, vital for maintaining focus and anticipatory actions at work.
We view these and other measures of the Zero-Accident Strategy as essential and sustainable investments in the well-being of our employees. This is because health and safety are the foundations of excellent performance at work and optimal working conditions. Only when every individual’s safety is a priority, and our motto is, your number one task is getting home safely.,' we will meet our objectives and collaborate towards a cleaner future. The best thing about this commitment is that everyone stands to gain from it.