While the use of generative AI to save HR professionals time and boost their productivity has captured headlines, another use of artificial intelligence in the workplace is having a significant impact: improving worker safety and reducing on-the-job injury and fatality rates.
Companies are turning to AI, advanced data analytics tools and other safety-related technologies, according to a report from the National Safety Council (NSC), a nonprofit safety advocacy organization in Itasca, Ill.
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Companies Turn to AI to Improve Workplace Safety
SHRM | Sep 2023
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By analyzing troves of safety incident data, AI-driven analytics can identify potentially unsafe behavioral or operational patterns and help business leaders anticipate and prevent potential safety issues.
Prioritizing Workplace Safety with AI
EHS Today | Aug 2024
“We train machine learning algorithms, which are basically identifying the same patterns that we as humans would be looking for, but without us needing to be there,” Stevens says. “Machine learning algorithms can be applied across thousands of hours of footage, identify patterns and then provide us with insights that we can then use to take action.”
Natural language processing has a wide range of uses that could be helpful to safety pros, such as recording meetings or coaching conversations – with consent, of course – and summarizing, taking notes, interpreting the tone and dynamics of the interactions, or providing translation on the spot.
“The ability to have real-time language translation of health and safety or work-based information, typically using a smartphone, is critically important for organizations that have a multilingual workforce,” Stevens says.
AI’s role in workplace safety
Safety+Health | May 2024
AI is helping industry to adopt a more proactive, rather than reactive, approach to workplace health and safety, which is helping to more effectively protect workers. And, if workers feel safer and healthier at work, this makes them to feel more dedicated, driven and loyal to their employer and their jobs.
AI: a powerful new tool for managing safety risks
British Safety Council | Apr 2024
By integrating AI tools, companies can preemptively identify risks, enforce safety regulations and fortify the overall security of their workforce. This data-driven approach represents a paradigm shift in occupational health management, emphasizing the role of predictive analytics. To fully embrace this transformation, business leaders must assess AI's diverse applications in industrial safety and cultivate a culture and risk management policies that support the integration of AI for enhanced workplace safety.
Acquiring Workplace Safety in the Data Age Via AI Innovations
OHS | Feb 2024
Many industries now use wearables like sensors, tracking bands, and smart helmets. The advent of the "connected worker" is enhancing safety awareness among employees and supervisors.
Wearables can alert when an individual is nearing physical exhaustion or if they're not using critical safety equipment — and with that real-time data, AI can provide personalized advice and recommend specific actions to individuals.
Sensor technology also enables environmental monitoring. Sensors can collect data on variables like temperature, noise levels, and toxic gases.
The New Frontier In Workplace Safety: Data Analytics And AI
Forbes | Dec 2023
Related SHRM Resource
Introduction to the Human Resource Discipline of Safety and Security
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An organization run by AI is not a futuristic concept. Such technology is already a part of many workplaces and will continue to shape the labor market and HR. Here's how employers and employees can successfully manage generative AI and other AI-powered systems.
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