Florida Injury Lawyer Blog
Industrial warehouses, construction sites, and other workplaces are often the site of forklift truck accidents in Homestead and other Florida communities. In many cases, these workplace accidents in Homestead and other cities are caused by uncontrolled traffic, overloading of forklifts, speed, or difficulty with the machinery itself. According to safety experts, however, there are several things that employees and employers can do to prevent these types of injuries and accidents:
1) Ensure good planning.
Written safety policies can go a long way towards preventing workplace injuries. Employers should check their workplaces for hazards and come up with concrete, written plans for preventing injury. While not every accident can be prevented, many can be foreseen and in many cases steps can be taken to minimize the risk.
2) Institute good training programs.
Undertrained and underqualified employees are more likely to be injured and more likely to file workers’ compensation claims in Homestead and other communities because they are more likely to be injured on the job. It is important for employers to screen employees carefully and to train them for job-specific tasks to make sure that workers know how to stay safe on the job.
3) Take steps to prevent tip-overs.
Tip-overs are one of the leading causes of serious injury with forklift trucks. Unfortunately, when a forklift starts to tip over, many workers on instinct try to jump clear of the truck. In too many cases, this leads to crushing injuries, fatalities, and spinal cord injuries in Homestead and other cities. According to safety experts, there are several things that employees can do to prevent tip-overs:
•Keep the load on the trucks stable by not overloading the truck and by lowering loaded forks and tilting them backwards
•When using a forklift, take turns at a slower and steady pace
•Be cautious when using forklifts to move tall, oddly shaped, wide, or otherwise unstable loads, finding alternative ways to move them where possible.
4) Allow only responsible drivers on forklift trucks.
Proper supervision can help prevent any sort of irresponsible or reckless driving. Even if done in jest, any sort of irresponsible driving can be extremely dangerous, simply because forklift trucks are often unstable and every heavy.
5) Take extra steps to protect pedestrians around forklifts.
One of the big problems with forklifts is that they are often used in workplaces where there are also employees and workers walking in the same area that the forklift is being used. It is important to use the signals and horns on the forklift to alert workers in the area that the truck is in motion. The person operating the forklift should keep their eyes in the direction the forklift is moving and should be vigilant about checking blind spots and checking for pedestrians in the area. Use warning signs and floor markings, where possible, to remind workers where forklifts may be in use.
Have you been injured in the workplace due to a trucking accident? The full service law firm of Flaxman Law Group would like to help by offering a free, no obligation case review. If you have been injured, you can always contact us to review your options and to get an assessment of your rights.