Maximize Employee Involvement for a Safer Workplace

Leader commitment and employee involvement are two "must haves" for a safe workplace. OSHA stresses their importance in standards and guidance documents. Consultants and unions encourage them. And safety managers of safe businesses attribute their success to them.

Certified safety professional Julie Sobelman, who oversees a large and diverse employee population as senior EHS consultant to the U.S. State Department, explained how to maximize employee involvement by keeping safety and health front and center all year long.

She advises building a 12-month safety calendar with low-cost programs that get people engaged. She says that safety and health should be integrated into work and culture, not stand-alone programs. "It's about creating a maximum opportunity for maximum participation."

Mix It Up
Sobelman reports that she always has at least one ongoing initiative in place. An example is Report It, Don't Ignore It, which encourages employees to report incidents, hazards, and near misses. The name of every employee who submits a report during the month is entered into a drawing. Winners receive a coin, which buys them an hour off work.

In addition to ongoing programs, Sobelman recommends short-term awareness efforts—for example, a forklift rodeo at a large warehouse operation.

A third category of safety program to encourage employee participation is what she calls "quick hits." These appeal to a broad demographic. An example would be a fall or spring campaign to change batteries in home smoke detectors when employees change their clocks. A minimotivator, like a pack of batteries, could be offered to encourage participation.

Source: Safety Daily Advisor - BLR