Colony Brands Employee Heat Safety Plans for 2023

To continue keeping your safety our number one priority we are rolling out a major heat illness prevention initiative in 2023. This will be an enhancement of what we did in 2022, including the following:

Supervisors will be educated on heat illness and heat illness prevention through our custom training. This is required for all front-line supervision and management by June 1^st. The link to the video via the Absorb training system is here: Video
Employees will be educated through a summer safety incentive program, several postings (Poster 1 and Poster 2), review the importance of hydration, job rotation, and extra breaks as the temperatures rise outside and inside our warehouses. We will also be participating in National Safety Month which has a week long emphasis on heat illness in June.
180 employees will be trained in CPR and First Aid to be emergency responders for all scenarios including heat illness. We have a couple spots open if anyone needs to sign up via Absorb!

Each site will review the heat illness prevention plan daily. This review does not need to be documented but must be scheduled as a daily task from June 1st until October 15th. This should be at a minimum two employees who look at today’s weather, the current facility heat/humidity, and the future forecast to ensure we are following our heat illness prevention policy.

We have a documented Heat Illness Prevention Policy that we have trained the operations teams on and are implementing completely. Policy

We are revitalizing our Athletes in Industry Plan for conditioning employees and working with employees to prevent injuries and illness during the May, June, and July Safety Meetings. We ask that all supervision review and ensure compliance / implementation of this program.

Athletes in Industry – This program is designed to limit repetitive stress injuries and condition our employees into full-time employees though conditioning, stretching, early reporting, and work flexibility.

Conditioning – Each facility is required to plan to get employees from their start date to full duty in a way that gradually builds the employee’s condition. We realize that all employees are different, so this requires a flexible plan and two-way communication.
Stretching – Each facility is required to perform at least daily stretches for all employees in an athletic and moving roll. Stretches can be customized to suit the needs of employees but the type and style of stretches may not create an increased risk for injury. Many groups may need additional stretching between breaks, especially line workers.
Early Reporting / Follow Up – Supervisors are asked to follow up with new employees during their first two weeks of employment to check for physical issues that might be caused by acclimating to their new role. This should be a face-to-face check in no less than twice per week during their first two weeks of employment or beyond depending on acclimation time.
Work Flexibility – Supervision of any level will be asked to create area or custom plans to acclimate employees to their work environment. This could be job rotation, gradual hour increases, gradual workload increases, and/or custom plans that help employees acclimate to the work environment.

Our July Safety Day talk is Preventing Heat Illness, which will require that all employees in the organization complete the safety talk quiz for company prizes. Link to Safety Talk

Materials about Heat Illness and Prevention outside the workplace will be shared such as factors and activities that can create high risk for heat illness for employees and their families. English and Spanish versions of Heat Illness Prevention materials from OSHA will also be available.

A heat illness prevention audit will be completed by each facility the first week in June. Link to Audit

As part of our positive employee safety praise, all operational facilities will have electrolyte packets, cooling headwear, and/or electrolyte popsicles, a general giveaway on a hot day, or for turning in a Hazard Id that week.

These are just some of the steps we are taking to improve your safety related to heat in our warehouses and while outside the workplace. Individual sites and work groups may have more site specific initiatives, communications, and activities.

Thanks for your help in creating a Zero Accident Culture!

The Safety Team