employee safety

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With temperatures rising across Pennsylvania, businesses in landscaping, construction, and agriculture face a serious seasonal risk: heat-related illness among employees. Taking steps to manage heat exposure isn't just a safety best practice - it can also help reduce liability and avoid costly incidents.
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Both business owners and employees have likely heard of OSHA, which stands for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, a federal agency that sets and enforces safety regulations to ensure a safe and healthy working environment for employees.
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Even businesses with the most effective Human Resources Departments and the happiest of employees are vulnerable to lawsuits. Unforeseen situations can quickly escalate, positive working relationships can turn sour, and employees can become litigious, sometimes without valid reason. Unfortunately, even the most bogus claims must be addressed in court, and legal fees associated with winning a lawsuit can exceed $250,000, which hardly feels like a victory.
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Remote work options, both fully and hybridized off-and-on site iterations have overtaken traditional office models, studies have shown that it can have adverse effects on some employees' mental health. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) conducted a comprehensive online survey in the spring of 2021 of 1,000 remote workers' self-reported mental health, and the majority reported negative impacts on their mental health. In fact, Since transitioning to a remote model; isolation and loneliness, in particular, were noted by nearly two-thirds of respondents.
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When COVID-19 shut the entire world down two years ago, many wondered how businesses would pivot and persist. As closures and restrictions continued far beyond anyone's initial projections, it became obvious that "business as usual" was going to be anything but. And, while the transition to a remote model for schools and businesses throughout the world was an unprecedented shift with no real map for structure or outcomes, many made the adjustment with relative ease and found the remote model was not without benefit. Now, as the corporate world attempts a return to what was, it faces a number of concerns and considerations, not the least of which being a pool of employees that might rather remain remote.
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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the modern workplace has undergone some massive changes. And while adjusting to these has involved some growing pains, especially for employers, this new world of work is not necessarily a bad thing. If you're a small business owner, you may have some concerns and hesitation about adopting a flexible workplace model. Here are some steps you can take to explore what it means to have a hybrid workplace and find solutions that work for you and your business.
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If you're a small business owner, chances are the pandemic has been especially tough on you and your family. You may have had to change your business model, lay off employees or worse, close up shop indefinitely. But what about your employees? If you're a small business owner looking to support your staff through the pandemic, here's what you need to know.
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For business owners, operating during a pandemic is complicated to say the least. You want to do the right thing by your staff and customers, without losing the business you love. In many cases, there is a lot you can do to make patronizing and working at your business safer for everyone.
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I was reading the * Malwarebytes 2019 'State of Malware' Report today and one part of it that particularly interested me was related to Phishing Attacks.The reason I found this particularly interesting is that I seem to get A LOT of phishing emails.I won't go into all of the reasons why, but a lot of it has to do with the fact that I own a couple dozen domain names including this one and I don't try to hide my identity on any of them.You can easily find me at Bill@Since1849.com on many of those sites as well as on the sites of many of our insurance companies.I HATE phishing emails and I particularly resent what is called 'spear phishing' attacks.Simply put, a phishing attack might appear to be from American Express or Google or Sam's Club or a bank.They are often fairly general and claim that you need to log on to a website to check or reset your password.Spear phishing on the other hand is very direct and appears to be a more personal email from someone that you work with or perhaps someone that is a vendor or insurance company.They may have links, but more likely they might have attachments that are named things like Invoice or Your Order or Payment or SexyPic or whatever - - - all of these are designed to trick you into opening the document and view it.Sometimes they are harmless, but more often they contain Trojans or Viruses that are designed to compromise your computer or help the 'actor' gain access to information on your network.

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Owning a business means that you're responsible and often liable for the welfare of your staff and clients. Winter can bring extra hazards and increase the possibility of accidents and injury.

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If you've been around 'for a while' you are probably familar with the term MSDS meaning 'Material Safety Data Sheets'; these are sheets that spell out the hazards associated with chemicals and various other products used in a business.What you may not know is that MSDS sheets are now obsolete and the new standard is SDS (Safety Data Sheets) - these use a different format, identify somewhat different hazards, and use new graphics to represent relative hazards.

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Every employee injured at work is at risk of having an extended, costly absence. For employers, it can mean higher workers' compensation costs, lower productivity, increased training or overtime costs, possible litigation, and an adverse effect on employee morale. In some cases, $5,000 in medical expenses can add up to as much as $30,000 when lost time, retraining, and other often-overlooked costs are included. For employees, an extended absence can lead to a disability mindset and a lack of motivation for returning to work.
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