Forty percent of employees injured at work have been on the job for less than a year. It seems like a high percentage, doesn't it? Why is it so high? In a nutshell, new employees lack the knowledge and experience that is gathered by workers who have spent more time on the job. The obvious question is, How can employers protect their new employees and prevent them from getting injured?

To answer that, let's look at some of the reasons new employees get injured and what you can do:

• Employers assume that new employees know more than they really do--and that common sense will prevent most accidents.
  
  It's not that new employees are stupid--not by a long shot. Many of them may have specific knowledge or special skills, but they don't necessarily know how to translate this knowledge into safety in their new environment.
  
  Certain jobs require precautions that may seem like common sense to someone who has spent years at a job. For a newcomer, however, these jobs may present brand new hazards they have never even thought about.



• New employees are often afraid to ask questions.
  
  They are afraid they will sound stupid--they may even fear that they will sound so stupid that they will be fired. This may be especially true of young workers. Supervisors need to remind them over and over that they are happy to answer questions--any time.
  
  One safety instructor puts it this way: Students' questions often remind him of things he didn't explain as thoroughly as necessary--or something he forgot to mention at all. He feels the more questions, the better. Everyone will learn more.



• New employees do not thoroughly understand the necessity of using required PPE--or how to use it properly.
  
  Most people have heard horror stories about workers who were injured because they weren't wearing PPE that could have kept them safe. Perhaps they have some scary stories of their own to tell. Year after year, work accidents statistics show that an alarming number of injured workers were not wearing PPE that could have prevented--or at least lessened the severity of--their injuries.

Other reasons new employees may get injured include:

• The workplace environment is new to them--they aren't familiar with its hazards or what to do in an emergency.
• Employee training for a particular job often focuses on what to do--but neglects training about the job hazards to avoid.
• Employees do not know enough about hazardous substances in their workplace.
• The workplace does not send the message that safety is a high priority.

This article was excerpted from BLR's new special report, 7 Stupid Reasons New Employees Get Injured and How to Avoid These Mistakes. The full special report outlines all the reasons new employees get hurt and gives practical advice you can use to keep your new workers injury-free. Click Here for the full report.