Six Workplace Health And Safety Issues Every Employer Should Be Aware Of

The days of deference are well and truly over and whilst a few generations ago staff were willing to put up with unsafe or unhealthy conditions, these days putting your employees at risk can completely ruin your business.

A serious accident can mean a huge compensation pay out or even a criminal conviction, but smaller seeming issues can leave companies with a large price to pay if they don’t address them properly.

If you’re a company owner or you manage staff, take a look at these workplace health and safety issues which you shouldn’t ignore.

1. Blowing Hot and Cold

There is no official law regarding the minimum temperature that people can generally work at
, but the health and Safety Executive (HSE) does specify that workroom temperatures should be 13°C if the work is particularly physical and 16°C if it isn’t. The HSE says that workers should be able to carry out their jobs comfortably without the need to wear special clothing. So if your place of work is an ice box in winter and an oven in summer, you could run the risk of getting a serious complaint from staff.

2. Cramped Conditions

Squeezing too many people into a workplace will not only make it an unpleasant environment to be in but could also pose a danger. Injury and death is far more likely to be caused in over capacity buildings in the event of a fire, for example. To calculate whether your workspace meets HSE standards the volume of your space divided by the number of staff who work in it should be 11 cubic metres or more.

3. Lighten Up

The HSE
dictates that workspaces are adequately lit in order for employees to carry out tasks. This means that you can regulate light in different parts of your building. For example corridors don’t need to be as brightly lit as offices. It’s also a good idea to give staff control over light for example by allowing desk lamps.

4. Vibration and Noise

Noise can increase stress levels as well as being physically damaging so if your work environment is particularly noisy you must protect your staff appropriately. If the noise is sufficient staff should wear ear protectors. In addition, body vibration which can be caused by close contact with large machinery or when driving vehicles, can cause vision problems and back pain.

5. Taking a Break

According to the law workplace toilets must be clean, securable from the inside, well-ventilated and accessible, but it’s also essential to ensure you have enough toilet
facilities for your employees. If you have less than 6 staff then one toilet is acceptable but any more than that and by law you should have two or more toilets. In addition, there should be an equal number of sinks and clean drinking water available. If your staff are required to wear special clothing such as protective gear then they should be provided with an appropriate place to change. They should also be provided with an area to rest and eat.

6. Health and Safety

According to the health and Safety regulations set out for first aid in the workplace appropriate first aid equipment should always be provided so that immediate help can be administered in an employee is injured or falls ill. A first aid officer should also be employed who is in charge of maintaining first aid equipment and administering treatment as necessary. In the UK, all public places and workplaces are
smoke free unless they’ve been otherwise delegated which means staff can only smoke if official smoking areas.

John Hinds writes for Lojix. His interests include blogging, reading, playing tennis, listening to music and traveling.

How to ace your next job interview: Hot tips inside

If you don’t know what to say and how to act during a job interview, let this infographic sort things out for you.

You don’t need to have amazing charisma or be good looking. You just need to do the right thing.

Infographic by Sample Questionnaire

The 5 Best Budgeting Shortcuts For Small Businesses

If you have just purchased or opened a small business, you may know your trade well, but when it comes to budgeting, your skill set could be lacking. If you are like most small business owners, budgeting is your least favorite managerial task. That is because budgeting is not an exact science – especially during changing and challenging economic conditions. In fact, you may see your actual budget vary significantly from your planned budget during economic difficulties.

When there is a downturn, and you need to tighten your financial belt, you will need to re-evaluate your budget and make some changes. Read on for five simple tips that will help your small business put together a top-notch budget.

1. Emphasize Customer Service

During rough times, your business may not gain many new customers. In order to hold on to those you do have, you will need to provide excellent customer service. Outshine your competitors to retain the sales you already have after the economy improves.

2. Cut Costs

When times are tight and cash is needed to advertise, pay a crucial bill, or capitalize on an opportunity, cutting costs is essential. Take a look at which budget items can be controlled or altered – put off making purchases until the next billing cycle, or ask creditors for a change in payment terms.

3. Talk with Suppliers and Clients

When difficulties loom, talk with your company’s suppliers about renegotiating your credit terms If you have had a good relationship, chances are that the vendor will work with you to lower your minimum payments, adjust a due date or reduce your interest rate. At the same time, keep in contact with your own clients to ensure they pay you on time. Call any clients that have gotten behind on their invoices, and encourage them to get their accounts current. Consider offering a discount to clients for paying their bill in full now. Check your books and make sure you are billing all your clients in a timely manner.

4. Issue Employees Business Prepaid Credit Cards

Many small businesses allow some flexibility in what their managers, representatives and salespeople can charge to the company. Rein those costs in by providing your employees with business prepaid credit cards and establish some hard and fast rules about what they can be used for. Choose a plan that allows instant funding from your mobile device or computer when expenses come up, rather than depositing lump sums in advance that may tempt spending. Track the business prepaid credit cards through your computer or mobile device, to monitor how the funds are being spent.

5. Reduce Administrative Expenses

To keep your budget on track, slash your office expenses and administrative costs. Eliminate company travel and entertainment as much as possible. While it is smart to buy office supplies such as envelopes or toilet paper in bulk for maximum discounts when finances are good, when budgeting gets tight, only spend when absolutely necessary. Cut back or eliminate expense accounts, membership fees, lunches out, unnecessary services. Do your own maintenance and mow your company’s lawn yourself. Limit long distance telephone calls. Consider every possible way to cut corners and lower costs without seriously compromising your business. Request employee input into which expense areas could be reduced.

Bottom line – small business budgeting is a fairly easy but essential process that will allow you to forecast and match your current and future income and revenue to your monthly expenses. Ensure that enough money is available to keep your operation up and running, to expand, compete, and to guarantee a solid emergency fund.

About the Author: Marilyn Smith specializes in covering the latest news of interest to small business owners, including business prepaid cards.

5 Professional Business Gigs Your Company Is Missing

Every business owner knows that there are certain functions of their company that need to occur in order to survive. Most of these functions may vary from company to company, but there are some functions that companies either try to tackle themselves or completely ignore that can be damaging to their success. If you want your business to be successful, the following are five professional business gigs that you simply cannot ignore.

1. Transcription Services

Audio and video transcription is a professional service that most businesses overlook, but it can be extremely valuable to your company. Transcription services can be a great way to provide a hard copy of company or client meetings, brainstorming sessions or even audio notes that were taken about an upcoming project. Having a hard copy of these events can be extremely beneficial in case of technical errors or issues.

Transcription services can also be extremely beneficial for your company’s SEO efforts. If your company has a large amount of audio or video on your website, having these items transcribed and placing the transcription on your website can provide the search engines with the necessary keywords they use to rank your site. This can help improve your overall ranking.

The best part of transcription services is that you can generally hire a third-party company to do this for you instead of hiring a full-time (or part-time) transcriptionist for your company.

2. Copywriting Services

Content marketing has increased in popularity over the years, and without strong content, whether on your website or other marketing collateral, your company is not going to be very successful. Using a professional copywriter can greatly help your company.

A professional copywriter has the expertise to provide your business with the content you need to reach your audience. They provide a clear and concise message, and they ensure that the copy, tone and style of writing are consistent between all channels. Having clear and consistent content is a great way to strengthen your branding efforts, and providing error-free content shows your audience that you believe in quality.

There are plenty of freelance copywriters throughout the world that are ready and willing to help your business succeed, or you can always hire a full-time copywriter as part of your staff.

3. Graphic/Web Design

By now, you know just how important having an online presence is to your business. Today’s consumers are turning to the Internet to research products, services and companies before making a purchasing decision, and if your audience can’t find you online, your chances of earning business are slim.

Some companies take the cheap route and use a website design site such as Wix.com to create their business website. These companies choose from a variety of templates, add in their own copy and consider their website complete. While these boxed design sites are easy and cheap, hiring a real graphic and/or web designer is much more beneficial for your business.

Using a graphic/web designer allows you to create a site that is truly customized to your needs, and it will help you stand out from all the other companies using boxed websites. Your company can either opt to use a freelance graphic/web designer or hire one for your staff.

4. Community Manager

Social media has made a big impact when it comes to business marketing. Some companies have yet to jump on the bandwagon, and some that already have are still struggling to manage and maintain their site effectively. This is why it’s essential that your business hire a community manager.

A community manager is an individual (or a team of individuals) that is dedicated to maintaining and monitoring your company’s social media accounts. This person will set up all your company’s social media platforms, post regularly to these accounts and engage with your audience, perform customer service and make you aware of anything that occurs on these sites that could help or hurt your brand.

Having a community manager ensures that someone is constantly watching your online presence and communicating with your audience. It also keeps the rest of your employees from guessing who’s supposed to be monitoring these accounts and allows them to get back to, and stick with, their normal job responsibilities.

5. Blogger

Blogging is important to the online success of your business, and while some companies put the responsibility of the blog in the hands of the copywriter or community manager, you can also opt to hire a professional blogger to tackle this responsibility.

Blogging requires a certain writing art form that is different than other writing styles. Content needs to be engaging, concise and informative, otherwise it’s not going to be effective. Having a blog for your company is a great way to share your company’s knowledge and expertise and attract consumers to your company. Plus, it’s a great tool for search engine optimization.

Regularly changing the content on your website keeps the search engine crawlers coming back to your site. The more keywords these crawlers find, the better your site will be ranked. If you don’t change the content on your website often, having a blog attached to your website can help ensure that your website and blog remain highly ranked, increasing your visibility.

Having a blogger on staff can ensure that your blog is regularly updated and well maintained, and it can give your company an advantage over other companies that have yet to start blogging.

About the Author: Frank Simmons is a freelance writer and avid blogger. He writes articles that are informative and engaging and often focuses on business and blogging.

Top Tips To Start A Courier Business

Courier services are really relevant in today’s business world and there is a lot of need for a professional courier service. Setting up your own business is always a challenge and a courier business isn’t any different.

License: Royalty Free or iStock source: http://officeimg.vo.msecnd.net/en-us/images/MB900387571.jpg

But with these top tips you can set up your own courier business and make sure all the important areas are covered.

Make Sure You Are Up For The Work

The best courier businesses are the ones that know what they are doing and that have the passion to deliver. Thus make sure you are up for the challenge and get some basic knowledge about the industry.

You need to know the positives and negatives and be prepared to work hard to gain reputation. Start Ups provides links to companies that can help you start your new business with some financial help and some of these companies will also provide you with great mentoring possibilities.

Do Market Research

All great businesses need to have done market research in their field to ensure they have gained enough clients. Look around to see what your customer base is and all the special services people are looking for. There is a lot of need for instance, for motorcycle courier businesses these days as well as the need for specialist couriers in antiques.

Proper market research will save you from setting up a business in an area that can’t handle a new courier service because it is already crowded with reputable service providers. It can also help you find that special niche area in which you can set up your business and really boost your business prospects.

Gain Good Reputation To Market Your Business

The best way to market your courier business and gain more customers is to ensure you deliver fast and safely. Thus always retain a good business code and give your customers a pleasant experience. It is essential that you always provide what you have promised; empty promises are the worst way to run your business.

You can start your business alone but if you run it with someone else or you will employ other people, make sure they are trustworthy as well. Train all your couriers well and ensure that they retain the same level of professionalism as you.

Get Proper Insurance

The most essential thing is that before you start working you get proper courier insurance. There are different types of courier insurances available so search carefully to make sure you choose the right one for your business. Carefully discuss these options with your service provider before purchasing the insurance.

As well as having multiple insurance options there are also differences in the vehicles that can be insured. Courier insurance at XYZ for example, can be purchased for motorcycles, vans and cars.

With the above tips you can be certain that you have all the relevant information to start your courier business or look into starting one. Make sure you do your research and look around for different options before you start up.

About the Author: Jill has experience in helping new businesses to set up. When she isn’t providing help for new entrepreneurs she loves to enjoy a quiet night with her two dogs and a glass of wine in her hand.