Slips and Trips – They Happen a Lot!
What exactly is a slip? What is a trip? And what causes them to happen in the workplace – or anywhere else?
According to the Oxford English Dictionary, a slip means “to slide unintentionally, especially for a short distance; to lose one’s footing or balance or place by unintended sliding”.
Meanwhile, a trip means “to stumble or cause to stumble, especially by catching or entangling the feet”.
So, in simple terms, a slip is normally caused by losing contact with the floor, whereas a trip usually happens because an obstruction catches/destabilises the feet.
Have you noticed how both definitions share a common factor? They imply that the incidents are both unintentional, not deliberate. They happen by accident.
People… the Issue!
People are one of the major reasons why slip and trip incidents are still largely static. Typically, we view slips and trips as accidents, assuming that they are an inevitable factor of life. However, when we take risks seriously, we can take measures to reduce the number of slips and trips in the workplace.
Whatever the reason, a slip or trip can happen anywhere. However, statistics show that slips happen more often in wet or contaminated conditions and that most trips occur because of poor housekeeping or maintenance.
Factors That Increase the Risk of Slips & Trips?
6 main factors contribute to slip or trip accidents:
Environment
Flooring
Contamination & obstacles
Footwear
People
Cleaning
Slip-Resistant Footwear
Slip-resistant footwear may be required in workplaces where the floors cannot always be kept clean, such as food preparation areas and care establishments. In these environments, you will also receive personal, protective equipment, free of charge, from your employer.
*Please note: slip-resistant industrial footwear will have been tested for slip resistance to BS EN standards.
ETD’s Slips and Trips Course
For more information on hazardous substances, you can complete ETD’s online Slips and Trips Awareness course. Follow these five simple steps to get started.
· Create a free company account or single user account, selecting the £12+ VAT payment scheme.
· Purchase your user accounts using the online Elavon platform.
· For company accounts, create your user accounts (using unique usernames) and “activate” each user by pressing the “activate” button.
· Purchase your online training by selecting the courses that you require. Ticking a course will instantly assign it to the user’s account.
· Once the courses have been assigned, single users can access the course under “my courses”. Company users can log into their account, go to “my courses” and start the training.
If you require any assistance with the online training, then please contact our support team, who will be happy to help.
