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Safety and Risk
Safety and Risk Department
As the Pandemic Continued. . .
We were still tasked with keeping our employees safe. Disinfecting
shared equipment is still being practiced and was/has become second
nature. Many departments purchased aerosol sprayers to use in the vehicles; counter tops and doorknobs are still being wiped down with sanitizing solutions. Hand sanitizer and masks are still a commodity made available for PPE.
The Safety Department has a staff of 1 and is part of the Human Resources Department.
Human Resources Director
Renee Trujillo
Safety & Risk Manager
Kathrene Louer
Lowest Number of Incidents in 6 Years. . .
While we can brag about the lowest number of incidents in 6 years, it was by no means the least costly. The
city suffered a huge loss when a caterpillar scraper was rolled at the landfill in May.
Luckily, our employee was shaken up, but not hurt.
Aftermath of the caterpillar scraper incident that resulted in no injury
Lowest Number of Incidents in 6 Years Severe May and July weather Increased Claims
In 2021, the number of Workers’ Compensation claims rose just a bit, but the important number is the “No Lost Time” claims number.
No lost time claims are the ones that the worker goes to the ER and returns to work immediately. Out of the 14 workers who had lost time, only 6 were off work long enough to receive their pay from workers’ compensation.
Safety Training. . .
Although there weren’t any in house safety trainings offered by this department, many departments went above and beyond by obtaining different types of trainings for their staff. Some departments contacted manufacturers of their equipment and received training on their machines. Our insurer, New Mexico Self Insurers Fund (NMSIF) has provided online employee trainings we are implementing.
Insurance & Tort Claims. . .
The Safety Department is responsible for processing all insurance claims and tort claims. The total number of the combined claims for this year increased due to our two huge weather events, the May flooding and the July hail.
