Cottage Grove, MN (WorkersCompensation.com) - Elementary school kitchen employee Kathy Drobac knows the value of a slip-resistant shoe, having experienced a few close calls at previous food service jobs.
"There's always stuff on the floor around the dishwasher," Drobac said. 'The shoes really do make a difference.'
Drobac was one of the South Washington County Schools kitchen employees who stopped by the district's main office in Cottage Grove, Minn., last fall to be fitted for new slip-resistant shoes from Shoes for Crews.
The school district is one of a number that held Shoes For Crews fittings for employees in 2013. Because slips, trips and falls are a major cause of workplace injuries, many school districts encourage or require their kitchen and custodial employees to wear slip-resistant shoes for work.
The Eastern Carver County Schools, which has its district office in Chaska, Minn., had a Shoes For Crews fitting last spring to launch a safety program that included beefed up footwear requirements, said Nutrition Assistant Spencer Fischer.
Several kitchen employees had fallen on the job over the past few years, and so the district started the program to significantly reduce the risk of similar accidents in the future.
"How I explain it is the shoes are just kind of a tool for you, because you wouldn't take a hot pan out of the oven without gloves," Fischer said. "As the crew sort of recognized this was actually for their safety, they started to accept it a little more easily."
The value of slip-resistant shoes
A good pair of slip-resistant shoes will significantly reduce the potential to slip on water, oil or soap. And because they are comfortable, available in many styles and generally no more expensive than non-slip-resistant shoes, there's really no reason not to use them.
SFM Risk Consultant Gary Kaurala strongly recommends slip-resistant shoes in kitchen and custodial environments because the sole of the shoe is one of the few elements that can be controlled to prevent slips and falls. These workers are often moving fast, he said, and wet floors are inevitable in a food service environment.
A side-benefit of requiring slip-resistant shoes is the potential to reduce the number of floor mats commonly used in kitchens, resulting in reduced costs and reduced risks related to handling the mats.
"A fall can cause anything from a broken arm or shoulder to a head injury," Kaurala said. "And even a slip that doesn't cause a fall can result in a very serious back strain. That makes a simple preventative measure like slip-resistant shoes well worth the small investment."
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