Page 31 - OHS, November/December 2024

S A F E T Y C U L T U R E
Thanthara/stock.adobe.com
The Safety Stakes for New Hire Onboarding
New hire onboarding has long-term consequences—so it’s vital you get it right.
BY RAY PREST
the fi rst day of a new job. Th e psychological eff ects of em-
Plenty is at stake for an employee when they arrive at work on
ployment are profound—researchers have found that people
without work are less satisfi ed, under more mental duress
and suff er greater mental health challenges. A new job is a chance for a
fresh start, and oft en, it off ers a fi nancial shot in the arm. For a new hire,
there’s a lot riding on whether or not things pan out in their new gig.
Th e stakes are just as high for the employer. When a new hire
arrives at the workplace, they fi ll gaps in the workforce and power
up production lines. Th ey are also a cultural wild card and can
shake up the organization’s safety culture in dramatically positive
or negative ways.
Within all of these variables, there’s one crucial thing a new hire
and their employer have in common: serious safety risks put the long-
term health of both the worker and the workplace in serious jeopardy.
Risk Potential
Th e risk for the new hire is straightforward. Roughly a third of all
nonfatal workplace injuries happen to workers who have been at
their job for under a year. Regardless of age or experience at other
jobs, newness to a workplace is a massive contributing factor to in-
jury risk. When someone shows up for their fi rst day, they show up
with their lunchbox, a bounce in their step and a sky-high chance
of getting hurt sometime in the next twelve months.
Th e risk for the employer is less obvious but still very real.
When an employee is hurt on the job, the employer is hit with the
fi nancial impact of worker’s compensation claims and has to deal
with the inevitable impact on productivity and morale. And there
are several other costs too.
A new employee’s overall levels of satisfaction, productivity and
willingness to integrate with company culture are all heavily infl u-
enced by how things go in the fi rst weeks on the job. Even if they
don’t suff er an injury, a poor experience early in their tenure can
sour a new worker’s attitude towards their employer for years to
come. Additionally, the Harvard Business Review notes that early
turnover rates can be infl uenced by as much as 50 percent based
on how an employee is onboarded—and the HR costs of high turn-
over can put a major dent in the bottom line.
Importance of Onboarding
Th e new hire onboarding process can also heavily determine
people’s view of safety. And if there’s no onboarding process at all?
Well, that speaks volumes about an organization’s priorities and
how a new hire is likely to view safety while working there.
Th e fi rst few weeks at a new job is a relatively short period of
time, but it has huge long-term safety implications. Getting those
fi rst weeks right can save an organization a lot of money in terms
of reduced turnover, fewer injuries and better productivity. It can
also cost the organization a lot if they get it wrong.
Many workplaces off er new employees some get-caught-up-
on-safety training right off the bat so that they can do their job.
However, covering the basics is a lot diff erent than properly teach-
ing workers the ins and outs of workplace safety. Given the high
stakes for long-term safety outcomes, EHS professionals need to
ensure there’s a quality onboarding process focused on a few key
issues. Th is is to say that if you want to keep new hires safe, you
need to show them how safety happens at your workplace and then
empower them to take care of themselves.
I watched a webinar the other day with safety consultant Larry
Pearlman about how to make the most of a worker’s fi rst ninety
www.ohsonline.com NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2024 | Occupational Health & Safety 31