As a business owner it is important that you protect your investment, and more importantly your employees. Quite often, we assume our employees know what to do in the event they are threatened or faced with an emergency. That is not always the case. At my cleaners, I had two fire extinguishers, both mounted and in plain view. One was located in the rear near the equipment. One day, the motor on the topper caught fire and my presser took a rag and beat the fire out with the rag. I was not there when it happened, but later I asked him why he did not use the fire extinguisher and he said, “I didn’t think about it.” Granted, I had never discussed what should be done if a fire occurred. I should have!
This is the time to look at your surroundings and develop procedures to keep you and your employees safe. Your procedures need to be written down and reviewed with the employees so everyone understands what needs to be done. Below you will find a list for your review and action. It was developed in part by Safeco Insurance. You need to use it as a guideline for establishing what will keep your business safe.
• Have clutter, obstructions and signs been removed from the windows so that an unobstructed view of the store counter and/or cash register exists?
• Is your business and parking lot well lit?
• Do your employees keep an eye on what is going on outside the store and have you directed them to report any suspicious persons or activities to the police?
• Do you have the emergency police and fire department numbers and your business address posted by the phone?
• Do you have mirrors mounted on the ceiling or surveillance cameras to help employees keep an eye on hidden corners of the store and to act as a deterrent?
• Do you limit the accessible cash to a small amount and keep only small bills in the cash register?
• Do you have a safe to deposit larger bills as they are received?
• Are there a minimum of 2 employees on hand at opening and closing?
• Are the back doors kept locked at all times?
• Is the back door not opened after dark for any reason?
• Do you have policies that prohibit unauthorized persons from entering through the back door, being behind counters or being in the back working area?
• Are shrubs and trees around the building trimmed and under control?
• Have doors been reinforced with long screws or bolts in hinges, heavy-duty strike plates, pop out proof hinges or hole/nail combination at top and bottom?
• Are there properly installed deadbolt locks on all exterior doors and locks on windows that can be opened?
• Is there a procedure to ensure that all doors and windows are locked when the building is closed?
• Are potential access routes such as ladders, stairways and fire escapes secured?
• Is there an established and enforced key control procedure that includes keeping records of who has been issued keys, getting keys back from employees when they no longer have the need for them and provisions for re-keying or replacing locks when keys are not returned or are reported lost?
• Does your business have a burglar alarm system and are notices of the presence of an alarm system posted conspicuously?
These are just some suggestions for you to use to develop your own crime prevention checklist. Once you do an inspection of your business, tailor a plan to your business. Make a checklist for your employees to follow when they are closing.. This is an excellent subject to review at one of your staff meetings. You do have staff meetings, don’t you?
This is just one way to ensure your business is a safe environment. To all the mothers…Happy Mother’s Day! Think about giving carnations out on the Saturday before. It will put a smile on your customer’s faces.
