One of the top concerns of individuals working in manufacturing jobs is safety. Mustafa Sameen knows a workplace must be safe to be effective. Whether it’s making sure workers are trained on using heavy machinery, providing proper protective equipment, or educating workers on how to prevent ergonomic injuries, Sameen handles it all.
Sameen is a safety coordinator and HR generalist at CRRC, where he has spent the past year working on establishing a culture of safety in the facility.
“The most important thing is ensuring that CRRC has safety policies in place and ensuring people know what they are doing and working as safely as possible,” Sameen said.
Luckily, CRRC jobs are not highly dangerous compared to other manufacturing roles, partially because of all the work that has already been done to eliminate hazards in the facility. But that doesn’t mean safety can be neglected. One of the most common safety issues is ergonomic injuries, which can be prevented with proper equipment and training.
“We do everything we can to prevent injuries. We’re always trying to help people change their habits,” Sameen said.
Sameen’s main safety philosophy is ‘better safe than sorry.’ This mindset has led him to implement small, but important changes, like creating clear walking paths throughout the facility and giving knee pads to individuals working on the floor for long periods of time.
“We’re always looking for ways workers can do their job better and more comfortably,” Sameen said. “Most experienced personnel have seen what happens when safety is not important.”
When Sameen assumed the role of safety coordinator, he worked to completely redo the safety manual and related policies and procedures, putting an emphasis on job-specific training and overall safety. Now, all employees go through a safety orientation within their first week of work.
“Safety training is at times disruptive, but the crew has no problem with it,” he said.
One of the things Sameen appreciates most about working at CRRC is how easy it is to get people on board with new safety programs.
“We all have a safety first mentality,” he said. “The whole crew buys into the safety culture”
