Drive Safely Work Week (DSWW) is coming up in the beginning of October, from the 7th to the 11th. It is an annual event that shows the importance of safe driving and helps employers develop their own campaign for teaching employees about safety awareness and proper driving performance. It isn’t just for employees though, as community members and families also get involved in the event. Drive Safely to Work is provided by the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS) and also has a toolkit for businesses to utilize.
What is This Week All About?
NETS holds this annual event every year around the same time to help employees improve their employee’s safe driving skills. It is not only important to keep drivers safe, but everyone around them. An accident occurring early in the morning because the worker is tired affects everyone else in the accident, including passengers, drivers and even pedestrians on the street. So in order to protect the community, they host Drive Safely to Work Week as a way to introduce new safety tips and encourage employees to take their driving seriously. Over the years, approximately 3,500 organizations have participated in the event, which is more than 16 million employees.
This Year’s Theme
Each year, Drive Safely to Work Week has a particular theme, as set by NETS. This year, the campaign is taking a more holistic approach to driving safe and showing the importance of drivers being mentally and physically healthy and how that along with the health of the vehicle, make them safer and better drivers. The week’s theme is called “Gear up for safe driving: Mind, Body, Vehicle.” The materials offered to participating organizations show the importance of how having proper health of maintenance of the body, mind and vehicle itself, are all connected and add to safe driving.
Learning From the Campaign
When the DSWW begins in early October, employees and organizations are given a toolkit which includes tips and materials for being safer drivers. It includes general instructions, tips for driving safely and theme-specific information. This year, that includes helpful tips for sleeping better, how to maintain proper energy and focus throughout the day with regular breaks, having your vision checked regularly and being sure the driver is fitted well in their vehicle, and that the vehicle is maintained and ready to drive safely. For five days, the week will go over distractions while driving, fueling the body and mind, and how everything is connected.
By participating in the NETS Drive Safely Work Week, you encouraging your employees to not only learn how to drive safely, but also improving their overall health. Through these benefits, workers and everyone on the road is safer each and every day. It’s also a reminder of the importance of having proper commercial auto insurance. More information and campaign materials are available at TrafficSafety.org.
