- [Instructor] Emergency management plans
are an important component of an organization's commitment
to employee safety.
Every organization should conduct a risk assessment
to identify the major risks to employee safety,
and then develop emergency response plans that dictate
how the organization will respond if each event occurs.
Some emergency management plans are commonplace.
For example, almost every organization has a fire plan
that explains how employees and managers should respond
in the event of a fire in the building.
This fire plan should include notifying the fire department,
evacuating the building,
reassembling in a designated location,
and accounting for everyone in the building.
The organization's fire plan likely also includes
regular fire drills that ensure employees
remain familiar with the procedures.
Organizations should also develop plans
for protecting employees
in the event of a weather emergency.
The exact nature of these emergencies
will vary from region to region,
but may include protecting against tornadoes,
severe winter weather, and wildfires.
Employees should understand how to find out
if the office will be closed, and know that they should
never come to work if it would be unsafe to do so.
Plans for weather events that can occur suddenly,
such as tornadoes, should include instructions
for where employees should take shelter.
This will normally be in a basement or an interior room
with no windows, but you should consult experts
on your building's construction to determine
the safest location in your facility.
Just as with fires, the organization should have
regular tornado drills to ensure
that employees know how to react.
Finally, in today's environment, we must also recognize
the fact that workplace violence sometimes occurs.
Every company should have a plan for lockdown
in the event of workplace violence.
This plan should instruct employees on how they can find
safe refuge and seek assistance from law enforcement.
Every organization must develop its own, unique,
emergency management plan that reacts to the geographic,
structural, and operating characteristics
of their business environment.