Observing proper workplace health and safety protocols may seem needlessly complicated and tiresome. To others, it may appear boring and obvious. Whatever your initial reaction is when someone says “health and safety,” there are a number of less-obvious reasons why proper protocols help your business. Don’t just dot your “i’s” and cross your “t’s”. Making the right attitude toward health and safety part of your company’s core culture pays dividends: here’s how.

DIvidend #1: Improve your bottom-line

When you strive to make the right health and safety practices part of your company’s culture, the first people to benefit are your employees. And if your employees are safe and well-cared for, then your company will see a number of benefits as well. How does that happen? Observing proper health and safety results in fewer on-job accidents. Fewer accidents mean lower insurance payments, fewer missed days from work, and a better outlook from employees. Your workers will know first-hand that you value and respect them; that attitude, in turn, leads to better word-of-mouth among prospective jobseekers and favorable reviews from employees and customers alike. All of those factors add up to increased margins and an improved bottom-line.

Dividend #2: Employee benefits are employer benefits

Let’s look at one of the benefits we mentioned above in a bit more detail. How does improving your health and safety practices help your company? No company is more than its workers: nearly every business depends on manual labor at some point. An effective health and safety management system affects the financial bottom-line by reducing overhead costs, but it also helps by improving employee attitude and outlook. The benefits your company reaps from happy employees may be a bit harder to measure, but they’re real regardless. Happy employees have better mental health and reduced stress. Stress can cause missed days from work, poorer productivity, and even lead to accidents. Improve health and safety, and you’ll improve the at-work potential of your employees.

Dividend #3: Healthy and safe businesses result in confident consumers

The first two dividends largely center around your employees. This last one looks outward, at the customers your business seeks. Because proper health and safety lead to happy employees, it will also improve your business’s reputation. Customers prefer to take their business to companies with good reputations not bad ones. Health and safety practices are a way to build your company’s reputation inwardly and outwardly. At the same time, not properly following health and safety regulations can result in accidents and lawsuits which are costly are best, and devastating at worst.

Equipment Safety

Lots of businesses use heavy machinery which are obvious causes of workplace accidents. But less obvious tools can be equally costly. Equipment mishandling accidents remain a leading cause of injuries or worse casualties at work. Employees need to be trained to use correct technique and to be sure each machine is in good condition.

Health and safety rules don’t need to be burdensome. They’re actually offering your business tangible benefits.