Buying non-slip mats and safety boots is only half the answer to problems that have you on the slide.

For several years Australian Standards has acknowledged the difficulty of securing non-slip floors. Recently it published a Slip Resistance Classification of New Pedestrian Surface Materials, AS/NZS 4586:1999. The Chairman of the Committee responsible for the Standard, Richard Bowman, says that the Standard breaks new ground by rejecting the use of a universal minimum slip resistance threshold value to determine practicality and safety. He says, "A coefficient friction of 0.4 is no longer considered as the arbiter of safety". This move from prescriptive minimum standards to a contextual determination of safety and functionality is a hallmark of contemporary OHS.

Records on slips and trips are often difficult to find. The relevant injuries are usually categorised as contact with objects, sprains and strains, or some other definition. It is often only through an analysis of injury records, or by a formal process of accident investigation, that slips and trips are seen as contributory factors. An employee may have tripped due to inattention, but the inattention may have resulted from excessive workload or complex and misunderstood directions.

The OHS risk management of slips and trips needs to incorporate an analysis witnin an organisational, environmental, and cultural context. A vast number of "what-if" questions needs to be incorporated into this process to ensure that all potential risks are addressed.

Slips and trips have tended to be fossilised in the too-hard basket and are handled in a reactive fashion. For example, covering the extension lead that is lying across the floor with tape or a rug, putting on non-slip soled shoes, covering the lips of the stairs with abrasive tape. Much of this reaction stems from the implementation of business and production methods that do not take into account safety issues prior to architectural and design considerations.

Some of the newer purpose-built production premises incorporate risk reduction techniques, such as loading bay rails, hidden cabling in office partitioning and ramps rather than steps.

The message of incorporating risk-engineering solutions is still not universal. The most common instance I see is a lack of safety forethought in the cavernous foyers of our leading companies (and safety proponents).

Granite and slate flooring that is buffed daily to a high finish continues to adorn ostentatious entranceways and vestibules. Some of these foyers even have "water features". Within days of the buildings' opening and often on the first rainy day, non- slip mats are introduced into the mal entrances. Surely the designers were aware of the hazards of buffed and shiny floors. Equally, the buildings' owners should have known. Yet these types of foyers are still appearing.

The new Australian Standard will be of most interest to manufacturers and suppliers of floor surfaces and shouldn't mean that existing floor surfaces need reassessing and replacing. In many workplaces this would be economically impractical. But, as all floor surfaces eventually wear out, it would be wise to review current slip and trip controls to ensure they continue to meet contemporary standards.

An industry that is plagued by slips and trips is the restaurant industry, particularly in fast food outlets. The mix of fast production, large numbers of service staff in small areas, young workers, grease, racks of food within aisles and variable shoe types leads to a high incidence of slips and trips.

The following strategies have been implemented in the restaurant industry and can be of value to all workplaces:

• supplying staff with and informing staff of the required, appropriate safety footwear
• considering the shoe tread and the environment in which the footwear will be worn - don't just look at the steel toe without considering other hazards that the footwear is intended to avoid, such as slippery floors
• conducting housekeeping on a regular basis throughout the day, such as cleaning up spills immediately
• simplifying production processes and directions, as complex directions can reduce an employee's attention to where they are walking
• ensuring that health issues, such as medications compromising depth perception, are not the cause of slips and trips
• incorporating safe floor surfaces in building design and removing water and grease from walkways
• considering the age and experience of the employee and providing appropriate training.

© CCH Australia 2000 (reproduced with permission)

Kevin Jones is a consultant with Workplace Safety Services P/L, and Editor of Safety At Work publications.