Report on the Health Screening Program
As you all know, we held our Health Screening Program in the 3rd quarter of this year. We are very pleased that so many of you have shown interest in this initiative again this year. Colleagues who have been returning for screenings have particularly benefited from the opportunity to not only get an idea of their current condition, but also to track the positive changes in their lifestyle compared to the previous year(s). Screening tests are an excellent way of getting early warning of any deviation from the healthy norm and early detection can help prevent certain diseases. We are pleased that many of you are aware of this and are taking conscious steps to protect your health.
Acknowledgement to the Blood Donors
We are always proud to receive acknowledgement from the local branch of the National Blood Service for the regular assistance of the Hankook team. There is always a great need for healthy blood; and, during the phases of the coronavirus epidemic, the number of blood donors has dropped dramatically. This is why the blood donation actions at workplaces are so important, with over 100 participants taking part each time.
Special thanks go to the staff of the MF1 Extruding department, as the entire team of the day shift took part in the last event. Thank you for your exemplary attitude!
Thoughts on epidemiology
COVID-19 control is a key issue for all of us, both from the human as well as the worker point of view. Most of our employees are not so much worried about getting sick themselves and the possible serious consequences, but rather about the possibility of seriously infecting elderly or less resistent family members living in the same household. Another negative interpretation of the infection is that those who fall ill are inevitably forced into sick leave. This means a minimum of 10 days and less pay for that period, which can be hard on a convalescent who is already in a difficult situation.
We all know that effective defense is the best way to avoid this and the management is also very keen to ensure that all necessary conditions are in place. That is why it is important that we, as responsible people and workers, do our best to protect our loved ones, our colleagues and ourselves by wearing masks and regularly disinfecting our hands.
Preventing accidents at work
The good news is that both the number and severity of accidents at work have declined compared to the previous years, but it is still important to be vigilant. When a new colleague arrives, whether you are an old rider or a shift supervisor, you should take extra care to ensure that work practices are properly communicated and enforced. It is a common phenomenon that older workers lose their sense of danger as time goes by and are, most often, injured because they ignore the safety measure of the work phases. It is good to spot this early and make changes, so that a new team member can be set a good example.
Fortunately, the positive change in the wearing of mandatory protective equipment has reduced the number of cutting accidents, but there are still cases of injuries to parts of the body that cannot be protected by protective equipment. Make sure that when using cutting tools, you always find a safe cutting position and direction!
The other, “classic” cause of accidents is the dangerous way of solving a problem that has arisen during the operation of a machine. In this case, the most serious error is when the operator reaches into or enters the machine while it is in automatic mode, i.e. when the machine is still capable of moving or being moved. To avoid this type of accident, it is extremely important to set the machine to manual mode and activate the emergency stop before troubleshooting, as this is the only way to override the commands that ensure the machine’s automatic operation and to get it into a safe (stationary) position!
Unfortunately, the epidemic has also had a negative impact on accident prevention, as we have had to suspend regular EHS training. We strongly urge everyone to familiarize themselves with the educational materials published weekly as OPL in ARENA and to follow them in their work!
We wish you all an accident-free work execution and ask you to take care of each other!