GB would like to congratulate our client Urban Maintenance Systems (UMS) on making submissions for two awards in the 2015 WorkSafe Employer Awards.
UMS have submitted for the Commitment to Workplace Health and Wellbeing award, as well as the OHS Achievement Award.
UMS is a family owned and operated business who pride themselves on caring about the health and wellbeing of their staff, and who genuinely want their employees to enjoy their experience at work, with corporate values centred on a risk free culture.
The nomination for Commitment to Workplace Health and Wellbeing is recognition of the wellness program that UMS run throughout each year. The program includes both summer and winter components which focus on areas such as physical and mental health, injury management and working in inclement weather. The wellbeing program also includes an employee assistance program, employee awards, and a guest speaker series.
Since implementation, UMS’s program has been incredibly well received, with a recent UMS employee survey finding that 98.8% of staff agree that ‘my manager and team care about my safety’.
In addition to the Commitment to Workplace Health and Wellbeing award, UMS have been nominated for the OHS Achievement Award, which recognises the increase in safety they have achieved across the business.
Made possible by the teams’ diligent adherence to safety responsibilities, the lost time injury frequency rate (used as an industry standard for measuring safety) has decreased from 35.67 in financial year 2011 to just 1.06 in financial year 2015. This is an incredible achievement, particularly when compared to the industry rate of 6.1 and considering UMS employs over 230 outdoor workers including 200 vehicle drivers, 100 indoor workers and many contractors.
John Morris, Executive Manager – HR/SEQ at UMS is proud of the nominations and the change in culture achieved in recent years.
“As an organisation, we have worked hard to instil as sense of ownership and a commitment to following safe work practices.”
“We give our workers the power to stop any work they deem is not safe, and to ask for clarification or guidance in order to ensure their safety.”
Speaking of the wellness program, John stated, “It’s pleasing to see our employees so engaged in the wellness programs. We encourage them to get their families involved in the programs as well, and the uptake has been incredibly positive”.
GB Business Account Manager Bobbie Patel has witnessed the commitment UMS have made to the health and safety of their employees.
“We’re extremely proud of UMS’s achievements. It’s fantastic having the opportunity to partner with a client with such a genuine consideration for their employees’ wellbeing”, said Bobbie.
“They understand that their employees have families, and are committed to ensuring that each of them arrive home safely each day after work.
This commitment, along with the hard work by UMS’s claims managers at GB, has contributed to a significant reduction in premium for UMS; a great financial outcome for the organisation”.
WorkSafe Award finalists will be announced in early September.
For more information regarding UMS, please visit their website www.ums.com.au
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