Read this statement:
Attention all employees:
We will be conducting a fire drill Friday, July 22 at 10.00 a.m.
Please respond if there was a real fire.
Thank You, The Management
What message did you get?
- They want you to respond AS if there was a real fire or;
- Only IF there is a real fire?
Did you read the word “as” in the third line? Look again.
What do they really want you to do?
One word can change the whole meaning of a message.
The message above was posted in a high-rise office building elevator. One employee reading it was heard saying, “I have no idea how to respond to a fire.”
Learn Don’t Litigate
- Do you conduct regular fire drills in your workplace?
- When was the last time you conducted a fire drill?
- How do your employees respond when they hear the fire alarm? With concern? With a purpose? With confusion? With indifference?
For further information on employer’s responsibilities for fire safety, visit the Office of the Fire Marshal.
The message again: Learn Don’t Litigate
Here’s some tips from the city of Coquitlam, BC:
If a fire occurs in the workplace:
- Activate the fire alarm, leave the building and close all doors behind you.
- Have a primary and secondary exit. If you must exit through smoke, stay low by crawling on your hands and knees.
- Check doors for heat before opening them. If you can, close doors if you notice fire on the other side of the door
- Call 911 regardless of how small the fire appears to be.
Andrew Lawson
Health and Safety/Human Rights Advisor, Learn Don’t Litigate
www.learndl.ca
- Responding to a human rights complaint - September 5, 2012
- Ontario policy on competing human rights - August 8, 2012
- What does the case of Trayvon Martin tell us about racism in Canada? - April 4, 2012
