Corporate

©2021 Workplace Safety & Prevention Services. All rights reserved. 6 KEY SURVEY FINDINGS Number of respondents identifying themselves as Leading has increased from 12% to 17% over last year's results. Proactive saw an even greater jump from 28% to 38%. As a result of their commitment to health and safety prior to the pandemic, 76% of leading organizations reported low or reduced infection rates as compared to 41% of respondents in less developed categories. There was a significant increase in respondents who indicated that senior leadership is integral to improving health and safety. The number jumped to 51% from 32% in 2019. Mental health was still seen as an emerging concern but it also landed as number three on the top five challenges list. Stress was identified as an emerging issue for 68% of respondents up from 58% last year, and it rose from third place to second on the list. Among Leading and Proactive organizations, there was a strong link between mental health of employees and: – Workplace culture and engagement – Employee productivity – Ability to meet business objectives – Employee attraction and retention The pandemic has elevated the importance of health and safety in 86% of respondent's workplaces. And 85% believe that, going forward, health and safety will be more important than it was prior to the pandemic. The primary focus for Leading organizations during the pandemic has been implementing health and safety protocols (82%). That drops to 67% for those at Start of the Journey. The biggest challenge in implementing protocols for 43% of respondents was securing sufficient PPE. Among Reactive organizations, 53% said employee engagement was a significant barrier to health and safety improvement as compared to 23% for Leading organizations. " We're very confused as to what protocols to follow and what the laws and regulations dictate we should be doing at the moment. Before COVID, we had just started to get a handle on our H&S Program and now we are a bit lost. We have taken the time to provide mental health resources, tips for setting up a work station at home, and creating movement break resources for staff." —Start of the Journey respondent

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