In manufacturing, health and safety is usually synonymous with accident prevention, with the focus on eliminating physical risks. At Purmo Group, we have found that around 85% of accidents are caused by stress or exhaustion, demonstrating a critical link between mental wellbeing and health and safety.
Manufacturing plants by their nature have a high risk of accident, and these accidents can be severe. For this reason, an emphasis on reducing stress and ensuring physical and mental wellbeing are particularly important in the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) sector.
The Covid Effect
Since Covid, and the increasing digitisation of work, the boundaries between work and employees’ private lives are increasingly blurred. This has an impact on work life balance and consequently, on health.
We are promoting a culture of wellbeing and work life balance, together with an emphasis on employee satisfaction. This is not only good for our employees, but will make Purmo Group a more attractive employer for new recruits, giving us a competitive advantage in the job market,
Towards zero accidents through health and safety
At Purmo Group we strongly value health and safety. We have a 100% investigation rate, and have reduced our accident rate by 80% since 2012.
We are striving towards a zero accident rate across the business, and although we cannot completely eliminate the unpredictable and uncontrollable variables which can cause accidents, we can tackle some of the underlying causes we have identified.
It is not easy to measure wellbeing, but we will provide more opportunities and resources for employees to take care of their mental and physical wellbeing, as well as enabling local operations to provide services tailored to their individual needs. We will also audit manufacturing sites and suppliers to ensure all the right prevention measures are in place throughout the supply chain.
Employee satisfaction
We want all employees to be happy in their work. It makes for a safer, healthier workplace, and makes good business sense, as wellbeing is linked to accident reduction, less absenteeism and better staff retention.
We have started an annual satisfaction survey using Employee Net Promoter Score (eNPS) and engagement metrics, to better understand employees’ attitudes and experiences. We will address areas where we need to improve, with a view to increasing satisfaction and engagement levels year on year.