Besides how supermarket safety can affect consumers, employees’ are at high risk of injury due to the variety of tasks that must be performed. Cashiers, bakery and deli workers, butchers and stockers all need specialized training to help them safely perform their job duties. SafetySkills™ has developed an online grocery and supermarket safety training series that addresses safety concerns in grocery stores. This series includes the following courses:

• Supermarket Safety – Backroom Safety
• Supermarket Safety – General Safety
• Supermarket Safety – Safe Lifting Basics
• Supermarket Safety – Bakery/Deli Safety
• Supermarket Safety – Meat Market Safety
• Supermarket Safety – Slips, Trips and Falls

According to Tiara Rye, a Homeland Assistant Frontend Manager, felt that the series “was very interactive…it is easy to use and covers all the basic points in safety.” She also encourages other members of this industry to use this training .

Take a look for yourself at http://www.safetyskills.com/supermarket-safety-series.

You really have to give it to people that get tattoos – they know how to commit. Without medical removal procedures, tattoos will last for the rest of their lives. Unfortunately, so do the bloodborne diseases that can be transmitted during tattooing. That’s why safety in the tattoo and body art industry is so important.  No one should ever be faced with getting an incurable disease because they committed to some body art.

As a huge fan of tattoos and piercings, I always make sure everything is safe before I let someone stick me. One careless decision can haunt you the rest of your life, and nothing could be more haunting than an incurable disease like HIV/AIDS or Hepatitis.

Here are some tips to ensure your safety while getting a tattoo or body piercing:

1. Always make sure your tattoo artist or body piercing professional uses gloves and needles from an unopened package.
2. Look at your surroundings. If it looks dirty, don’t let them stick a needle in your body because it could be dirty, too.
3.  You should always ask questions about the shop’s safety precautions and procedures. They won’t mind at all and if they do, you don’t want to be there. 

There are low-cost training resources available to tattoo studios to help them protect their artists and customers.  SafetySkills™ has an online Tattoo and Body Piercing Safety Training Series that even has a free introductory Tattoo Safety Awareness course.

Online training can be accessed anywhere with an internet connection, making it convenient to learn about tattoo safety from work or home, depending on each tattoo artist’s schedule.  Click here for more information on these  online Tattoo and Body Piercing courses:

• Tattoo Safety Awareness (free)
• Bloodborne Pathogens
• Basic First Aid
• CPR Refresher

In Fort Hood, Texas on Nov. 5 at 1:30 p.m. suspected shooter Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, gunned down the very soldiers who he was there to help. 13 have died and 30 are seriously wounded. So what made this man crack to the point of violence and were there any signs that could have been an indication of what was to come?

It was reported by several individuals that Hasan was frequently expressing anger about his upcoming deployment. He was also involved in many office arguments about his disapproval of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. His final and most explosive outburst took the lives of his fellow soldiers and he now lies in a hospital bed breathing on a ventilator. Now don’t get me wrong, not foreseeing the future is nobody’s fault in this tragic situation. But being aware and alert to possible dangers is important to everyone. Unfortunately, it seems that our soldiers can’t even feel safe on their own base. It’s hard enough to have to become mentally prepared for the dangers of war without having to worry about your safety at home.

As if that wasn’t enough horror for one week, another shooting occured in Orlando, Florida at the office of Reynolds, Smith and Hills. This shooting left Otis Beckford, 26, dead and five others injured. This incident reportedly occured due to the anger of disgruntled former employee, Jason Rodriguez. Rodriguez is currently in police custody facing a charge of first-degree murder.

With two fatal episodes of workplace violence taking place within two days, one has to wonder – could anything have been done to prevent such tragedies? From 1992 to 2006, the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) found that 11,613 workplace homicides took place. Many have even indicated that this type of violence is expected to grow due to the stress of the economy and job market. Employers need to take the extra time to ensure their employees’ safety by taking extra security precautions as well as training efforts.

Here are some helpful tips on creating a safer work environment to avoid workplace violence:

• Do thorough background checks on employees. Many employers currently do this, but some have become more lax due to financial reasons. If you find out that a potential employee has a violent past, it may be in everyone’s best interest if you pass.
• Provide proper training. All employees should be administered not only training for the physical hazards of their jobs, but the emotional ones as well. There is a reason companies have a Human Resources department. Take advantage of all of the recommended HR training, such as Violence in the Workplace.
• Create an open-door policy and protocols for safety concerns. Make sure that employees feel safe when coming to a supervisor about a possible safety issue. All discussions should be respected and stay confidential. Create a protocol for reporting a concern for violence and follow-up on the matter with discretion.
• Have a no tolerance policy. Never condone or forgive a violent matter of any kind in your workplace. It doesn’t matter how minor the incident or if it was a joke gone awry. This needs to be embedded into the minds of your staff that your number one concern is their safety.
• Get security. Get some type of security in your workplace. This can mean an actual security guard, a monitoring system or a personal keycode system that can be removed upon the termination of an employee. The harder it is for a disgruntled employee to get into the building, the less likely they will try.

I think this video says it all – provide forklift training for your staff!  Oh, and if you’re company sells alcohol, make sure that the workers aren’t keeping the party going while on the clock.

This video won’t teach anyone to park a car, but it definitely lets us know that we are surrounded by dummies who need to take a driver safety course or two. This driver, a 62 year-old woman, was arrested after completing this stellar parking job and leaving the scene of the crime. This video reminds us all that driver safety is extremely important because this could have been a tragic situation if the owners of those cars were inside.

This course teaches learners the basic principles of laser operations and three essential laser components, how to identify major types of lasers, beam-related and non-beam-related hazards associated with laser operation and the controls used to eliminate or minimize laser related hazards. It also allows grown adults to shoot lasers at UFOs during the competency sections of the course, which is pretty cool if you ask me.

“Diversity is extremely important to any business,” Trey Greene, CEO of noodleStream.com. “Getting as many different perspectives as possible can only benefit your company. Understanding various markets by employing individuals who fits that demographic really helps you realize what makes them tick.”

Besides the professional benefits diversity can lead to, having the proper training on the matter can help avoid misunderstandings and potentially offensive situations that could have been otherwise prevented.

“I believe very few people intentionally say something discriminatory towards another person, but that doesn’t make it any less hurtful to the injured party. Sometimes co-workers need to be taught how to work together. This is not only good for your staff, but also for your business’ protection,” said Greene.

To learn more about diversity in the workplace, visit www.safetyskills.com/diversity-in-the-workplace.

Some might find these results shocking, but when the 1976  national influenza campaign gone wrong is put in perspective it makes complete sense. This campaign ended with blood on the hands of the government. The disease never spread as expected and 500 of those who were vaccinated developed Guillain-Barre syndrome, resulting in the 25 deaths. Knowing this and the effects that have been linked to countless other vaccinations, it’s only natural that people, especially parents, would be concerned about vaccinating themselves and their children.

But with all that said, there is still a great risk being expressed by experts about the dangers of swine flu. It is still expected to become a major problem and everyone should decide how they want to handle the situation. For those who would like the vaccination, contact your medical professional about the vaccine and when it will be available to you. For those who choose not to be vaccinated, be extremely aware of the other prevention methods you can take to avoid getting swine flu.

Kennedy spent over 3 decades of his life in the U.S. Senate and among his many contributions (over 2,500 bills), one of his passions was creating a safer workplace for American workers.

One of the most well-known rights Kennedy fought to give workers was the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). This act gave all workers the ability to take unpaid leave to care for themselves or family members in case of a medical illness or for maternity leave without fear of termination. Over 60 million Americans have been able to take advantage of this act thanks in part to Ted Kennedy.

Kennedy also worked to provide Americans with the right to paid sick leave by introducing the Healthy Families Act, which would ensure 7 days of paid sick leave to be used for workers’ health maintenance as well as their family members. He also saw the need for the Working Families Flexibility Act in order to allow employees the ability to meet the needs of both family and work through a flexible job arrangement.

He even made a point throughout his career to address the financial discrimination that hits women where it hurts, their wallets. Women currently earn 78 cents to every $1 earned by a man. When the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009 was signed by President Obama, Kennedy was a leader in its passing.

Another group Kennedy fought for are those in the mining industry, with his MINER Act legislation passed in 2006. Despite the new law being passed, Kennedy felt more needed to be done and he continued to call for safety investigations across the country concerning these workers.

He also worked tirelessly to pass the Protecting America’s Worker’s Act, which would expand the coverage of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. “Enacting of the Occupational Safety and Health Act in 1970 was a major step in guaranteeing the basic right of workers to be safe on the job.  Since the law was signed, however, we have not substantially amended it to improve worker protections,” said Kennedy.

Although this bill has not yet become law, even after his death it will live on through the efforts of his fellow senators. He will be missed.

Perks of online education and training:

• Can be done anywhere at anytime
• Saves thousands of trees with online testing and record keeping
• Lessens gas consumption which is better for the environment and your wallet
• No building or utility costs
• No trainer costs
• Takes less time to complete

Companies worldwide have realized the benefits of using green training. This method allows employers to train their employees at anywhere and anytime with the most current content. On top of the fact that less time is spent by employees in training and more time working, it saves businesses by financially by the cost cuts that go with this change. Companies like Dell, Yahoo, Goldman Sachs and even the country of Norway have committed to going carbon neutral and are reaping the benefits, not only through the PR that it brings in but with the money saved.

Watch this online  How to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint demo to learn more about how it can save the environment and your company.