How Prioritizing Workplace Safety Can Help You Meet Sustainable Development Goals
Taking steps to protect your workers can also have a large impact on the environment.
- By Nicolle Portilla
- Jul 19, 2023
Mention sustainability, and most people will automatically think about preserving natural resources and protecting the environment. While those concerns are certainly part of what is commonly considered sustainable development, the concept reaches further.
The United Nation’s (UN) sustainable development goals include the likes of overall health and well-being, decent work and economic growth. The goals also address industry-related topics and the need for responsible production. This is where workplace safety and sustainability overlap.
In this article, we examine how prioritizing workplace safety can help forward-thinking businesses meet sustainable development goals while also growing their profitability.
Why Workplace Safety and Sustainable Development Goals Go Hand in Hand
It’s a common misconception that sustainability is a 21st-century concept. The idea dates back over 300 years to German forestry expert Hans Carl von Carlowitz, who decreed that sustainable use of timber should be among the highest goals of forestry.
In the 1970s, another German scientist transferred the idea from the forestry industry to natural resources in general and economic development. In the 1980s, the UN’s Brundtland Commission redefined sustainability as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.“ That broad definition still applies, but it has been refined since the days of the commission.
Using Sustainability for a New Approach to Workplace Safety
Today’s concept of sustainability is based mostly on our interpretation of the sustainable development goals published by the UN in 2015. These 17 goals cover workplace-related issues as well as natural resources and other considerations.
The goals have not only become part of the national conversation but they’ve also been adopted by businesses looking to secure their development and the future of their workforce. Aside from businesses, government organizations like OSHA have embraced the importance of sustainability.
According to OSHA, choosing to implement sustainable practices in workplaces allows businesses to approach health and safety from a new angle. Setting safety standards can take time and occasionally be too slow to protect workers from hazards, including injuries and illness. In those situations, leveraging movements like the global drive for sustainability can accomplish both goals at the same time.
Integrating Workplace Safety into Sustainable Development Strategies
So, how can businesses integrate their commitments to workplace safety and sustainable development?
Per OSHA, there are three pillars organizations should try to achieve a balance between: people, planet and profit. Organizations that follow this path recognize their teams as their most valuable resource and understand that they can’t work sustainably without protecting the health and well-being of their workers.
Linking sustainable development and workplace safety requires a mindset shift from leadership teams. Traditionally, the focus of many senior leaders has been on delivering dividends to shareholders. In a truly sustainable business, leadership teams recognize that this is not possible in the long term without providing a healthy and safe environment for workers.
Rather than treating sustainability and workplace safety as separate concepts, this new approach unites both. They may still be handled by different teams, but their strategies are intertwined.
Turning Workplace Safety Into a Pathway to Sustainable Development
So far, this article has focused on the somewhat theoretical concepts of sustainability and workplace safety. This section hones in on the practical aspects of integrating the two concepts.
Mitigating Hazards. Depending on the nature of the industry, workers may be exposed to a wide range of hazards, including physical, chemical and biological hazards. Many of those hazards are caused by the use of materials and substances that are not sustainable. Some of the most common hazardous chemicals are made from finite resources, for example. Replacing them with less hazardous alternatives protects both workers and the environment.
Re-Evaluating Waste Management. Where potentially hazardous materials and substances are not easily replaceable, companies need to re-evaluate their waste management systems. Is your organization doing everything it can to reduce waste and minimize the amount of waste sent to landfill? Reducing waste starts with setting a goal, such as sending nothing to a landfill within a certain number of years.
Considering Professional Support. Recognizing that it’s unrealistic for businesses to change their practices overnight, it’s only natural to be skeptical about change or feel uncertain about where to begin when it comes to implementing policies that support workplace safety and sustainability. That’s where the support of professional recycling organizations becomes invaluable. Their insight into the journey toward zero-waste operations can be instrumental in making a company’s efforts to integrate sustainability and safety successfully. Partnering with a reputable organization can provide that expertise to businesses looking to strengthen their efforts to become sustainable.
How Promoting Workplace Safety Can Ensure a Company’s Sustainable Future
The UN’s sustainable development goals call for the provision of decent work as well as opportunities to safeguard good health and well-being.
Integrating and achieving these two goals requires more from businesses than simply protecting workers from common workplace hazards such as the ones we discussed above. Companies also need to take into account their teams’ workloads and overall stress levels.
While it’s normal to be exposed to a stressful situation at work from time to time, prolonged, consistent stress can predispose workers to injury and illness. A company that is not actively working to minimize those issues is hardly on a path to true sustainability. The business may be working to achieve environmental goals, but without sustainable workforce development, it can’t secure a truly sustainable future.
Conclusion
Keeping workers safe and healthy protects their productivity and their chance to contribute to the company’s economic future. Taking this approach simply makes good business sense. Consider the alternative—ignoring workplace safety or focusing only on meeting the minimum regulatory requirements is likely to increase the risk of illness and injury at work. Serious injuries and long-term illnesses are not only disruptive but also threaten the company’s profitability over time.
Integrating workplace safety and sustainable development commitments requires leadership teams to adopt a new mindset. Developing policies and procedures will take time, but the results will speak for themselves and leave your business in the best possible position for future growth.