Safe Workplace and Safety News

This is the safety news blog for the Safe Workplace web site. We cover workplace safety related news with a focus on how safety, or a lack of safety, impacts employers, employees and their families. We also cover topics such as safety training, safety tools, and legal issues related to safety. For regular safety news and information enter your email address in the box above the Subscribe button to the right (then click on the button).

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Washington State Begins New Workplace Safety Advertising Campaign

The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I), in partnership with four business and labor organizations, began an advertising campaign on Monday to raise awareness about the importance of workplace safety in Washington state.

Television, radio and Internet ads in Western Washington will spread the message that the most important reason for making your workplace safe is not at work at all. Instead, workplace safety is important as a means of sustaining relationships with family and friends outside the workplace.

The centerpiece ad, called Homecomings, shows people coming home from work to their loved ones, juxtaposed against one boy who is worried that his dad isn't home from work yet. The ad concludes with a reminder that, on average, two people die every week in Washington from on-the-job injuries and illnesses. The ads call attention to WorkSafe.Lni.wa.gov web site and resources for making workplaces safer.

L&I purchased licensing rights to an award-winning workplace-safety campaign developed in Australia, saving creative and development costs. The ads were repurposed for Washington residents, including voice-overs to eliminate the Australian accent.

In Australia, surveys showed that about 85 percent of viewers thought the ads were quite or very effective. Also, 24 percent of employers and 18 percent of employees said they had personally taken action as a result of the campaign. This was considered a very strong result in a low-interest category such as occupational safety and health.

About $450,000 in TV and radio airtime and Internet space has been purchased. The money comes from dedicated workers' compensation funds, which can't be used for purposes other than workers' comp and workplace safety.

Labels: safety, safety and the media