Safety Practices, Firm Culture, and Workplace Injuries

Workers' Compensation insurance, which covers all medical expenses and part of the lost wagesassociated with injuries, cost employers $63.9 billion in 2001 (National Academy of SocialInsurance, 2004). The indirect costs of accidents lost wages, damage to equipment, trainingand rehabilitation expenses are several times this amount. On the job injury costs are animportant component of the firm's operating expenses. Human resource management can change workers' incentives to take more care on the job (accident prevention), improve workers' incentives to return to work following an accident (loss reduction), and improve workplace efficiency by appropriately involving workers in the firm's decision making.Butler, Richard J. is the author of 'Safety Practices, Firm Culture, and Workplace Injuries', published 2005 under ISBN 9780880992770 and ISBN 0880992778.