Despite the positive correlation of safety and productivity, allocation of budget towards safety initiatives can at times be difficult due to the intangible nature of the changes. Through $afety Pays OSHA has combed through mountains of data to try and nail down the costs associated with preventable injuries. The tool helps highlight the true impact of an injury from slowed production to insurance costs and beyond.

As we've previously talked about here, the total indirect costs of an injury are often 3 to 10 times the direct costs.

A short list of indirect cost examples are:

  • Production Down Time and/or Delays
  • Administrative Costs
  • Negative Client Impact
  • Lower Employee Morale
  • Decreased Pace Due To Fear Of Injury
  • Increased Insurance Premiums

Thus to create a complete picture of the impact of successful workplace safety, a comprehensive approach is necessary. OSHA's $afety Pays Calculator is a great place to start. The calculator uses past data and configurable company metrics provide real number injury costs that can be used to assess the impact of occupational injuries and illnesses on a company's profitability. The results show even relatively small injuries can have a large impact:

Industrial safety costs

Configure your own analysis via OSHA's $afety Pays Calculator here.

Are you unsure if any of your processes are operating at the appropriate level of safety? VMRA can help! From performing safety certification on equipment before shipping to safe operating analysis to new safety systems, VMRA can improve your safe performance to advance your organization's productivity and financial performance.