At 3:30 p.m., Valley Industries’ parking lot bustles with activity. The first group of employees, all adults with developmental disabilities, has finished their shift. Each employee heads through the parking lot, knowing exactly where to meet their ride—some to OATS Transit buses, some to parents’ cars or vans, and some to metro buses. It’s an organized scene, with each vehicle in its designated spot on a smooth parking lot free from trip hazards.
It wasn’t always like this, though. Jim Guyre, executive director at the sheltered workshop, explained: “We used to have all employees leaving the building at once.” Several years ago, Guyre and his team realized that morning arrival and afternoon dismissal carried serious safety risks, including the risk of a moving vehicle hitting an employee.
Through a generous donation of property from Ameren Missouri and a capital funding grant from the Productive Living Board, Valley Industries completely renovated its parking lot. They began releasing employees in shifts and allocating staff resources to help manage the traffic flow.
The result? A drop in trip-related injuries and a much safer environment for employees navigating the lot.
Longstanding relationships reap rewards
Valley Industries is one of Missouri’s 92 sheltered workshops – supervised workplaces employing adults with developmental disabilities. When MEM began in 1995, Valley Industries was one of our first policyholders. They’ve been working with their agency, Yates Insurance Services, even longer than that.
“We’ve really gotten to grow with them, from two employees to nearly two hundred,” Ed Yates Jr., vice president of Yates, said. According to Yates, Valley holds itself to an even higher standard than most when it comes to workplace safety. He’s seen them go to great lengths to ensure employees with special needs are set up to safely and successfully perform their jobs. For example, they might need to provide specialized safeguards or customized tools based on the individual. “It’s been great to see the inclusion and sense of purpose they’ve brought to the community through the years,” he reflected.
Through long-term partnerships built on putting safety first, Valley has found that year after year, a work comp policy with MEM provides the most value for their organization.
According to Guyre, most sheltered workshops have work comp insurance through a mutual that’s specific to their type of workplace. However, Valley has remained with MEM for all 30 years. “Over the last 10 years, our premium has gone down or remained steady,” Guyre shared. Valley’s decreased number of work comp claims has lowered their e-mod, contributing to premium well below the industry average.
Lowering premiums one habit at a time
At MEM, we really can’t take the credit for Valley’s downward trend in premium. That goes to the leadership team and their facility’s employees. Teri Wilson, employee service provider and safety director, said that safety is the organization’s number one priority.
And it seems that every employee understands that priority. If something is amiss or a hazard is spotted, supervisors are sure to hear about it from one or more employees. “They’re proud when they report a hazard to a supervisor and see it corrected,” Wilson commented.
Valley’s safety mission is to go 365 days without a lost-time injury, a goal they regularly near or exceed. Currently, they’ve gone 1,215 days without one. Cathy Younker, who manages accounting and the MEM account, said that when they do have a claim, MEM is with them every step of the way. “They keep us in the loop on everything,” she mentioned. “We appreciate that.”
Smoothing over hazards leads to fewer injuries
The most common risks that Valley employees face are slips and trips.
In addition to the parking lot improvements, Valley made another big investment to reduce trip hazards in its facility. Over time, the expansion joints in their aging floors broke, causing the floors to be uneven in spots. They had the joints removed and hired a contractor to diamond grind all the floors to a smooth, even finish. With these hazards removed, their trip-related injuries declined even further.
Finally, the installation of additional cameras in their facilities has improved the team’s ability to identify the root cause of slip and trip incidents. “When we were a smaller company, it wasn’t as big of an issue,” Younker explained. “Now, with 160 employees, we need to be constantly aware of the environment.”
Workplace safety pays dividends
Valley Industries is a shining example of what you can achieve with a dedication to safety and strong partnerships with your agent and work comp provider. By holding regular safety meetings, rewarding employees for safe behavior, and investing in facility improvements, they have built a safety culture that protects their employees and saves money on their work comp insurance.