For a lot of us, this upcoming holiday shopping season is a time looked forward to throughout the year. For some it is the dreaded \u201cBlack Friday\u201d! Those of us shoppers that actually enjoy the events and sales put on by retailers have to consider safety concerns like crowd trampling, slips, trips and falls, hostility from others and I am sure there are more. So, what about the workers of the retail industry? What safety issues do they have to deal with?<\/p>\n
Employees of retail chains are going to come across the very same issues a shopper comes across during this shopping season. However, because they are on the other side of the \u201ccounter\u201d it is their workplace. As a workplace there are OSHA<\/a> standards that must be met to proactively ensure the safety of these employees. With the increased volume of shoppers this time of year most retail workers will experience longer work hours and increased workloads. In some cases this means temporary seasonal help. This seasonal help should be trained to the same OSHA standards as regular hourly employees to maintain their safety too. With increased sales comes more empty shelves for restocking. Therefore more lifting, more time on ladders and narrower aisle ways. This means an increase for potential injury if lifting and safety procedures are not followed properly.<\/p>\n