Image from WorkSafeBC’s Slips, Trips, and Falls: School – Stairs

Last year in BC, 6,500 workers were injured from slip, trips, and falls. This new video series from WorkSafeBC addresses this risk in a school setting, where there are many people moving through hallways and classrooms every day.

I sent a link to a teacher I know, and we talked about one video that shows a teacher standing on a wobbly chair, leaning over to pin something on the wall, and then crashing to the ground. It’s one of those tasks that seem like they will take “just a second”, so we take a risk – and often we get away with it. The more times we get away with it, the less seriously we take the risk, perhaps. But it only takes that one time.

“I’ve seen stuff like that tons of times,” he said, referring to standing on an unstable chair to put something on the wall. “I’ve done it at home and at school. We probably all have – but this video makes you think about it more, that’s for sure.”

In Canada, more than 42,000 workers are injured each year from fall accidents

“This number represents about 17% of the ‘time-loss injuries’ that were accepted by workers’ compensation boards or commissions across Canada,” reports the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, referencing statistics from Association of Workers’ Compensation Boards of Canada, 2011.

These risks are addressed in Slips, Trips, and Falls – one of the titles in WorkSafeBC’s ebook series, available for free from the iTunes Store and viewable on an iPad. It’s worth checking out, whatever industry you’re in.