MN Safety $ Health Conference 2015

MN Safety & Health Conference 2014

Safety Culture - Scenario

Here's a scenario: You started working as a Safety Professional for a company that talks often and loudly about its great safety culture. Besides that you have discovered a lot of things that are not going so well and are not so hot, within 4 months three employees tell you that they did not really want to report a case because a) two employees thought it was a recordable incident and did not want to be responsible for a higher EMR rate, and b) a person in the leadership team/management does not report the incident for a whole week and then says that he/she thinks it would look really bad if he/she in his/her position would have a recordable incident.

Suppose you discuss this with someone else in the leadership team/management, don't mention any names, just state the fact that you believe that there is a serious issue with the highly praised safety culture within that company. How would you react if the person you are talking to in management tells you that there is nothing wrong with the safety culture and that these three opinions are only gut feelings of those employees?

Talking or Doing?

Ever met people who made an awesome first impression? Who had the smooth safety talk dripping from their lips? Who were all about teamwork and working together on safety? I bet you have met those. And then, after a while, sometimes sooner, sometimes later, you find out that you have been outsmarted and face yourself with a bunch of issues but no cooperation?

I am sure this happens a lot. Whether in small or big companies, safety is still too often being handed off to the safety guy who was hired to do all the dirty work. Of course, if that person happens to achieve results, those are proudly being displayed by those who were too busy before to work with you.

If you are able not to just throw your hands up into the air and give up, settling in for mediocrity, you might just have to look for another job, hoping that eventually you will find an honest employer who puts employees in the center of attention and does not disguise the expected financial benefits as caring for people's safety and health. Or you might be lucky and find safety folks and networks who will give you mental support so that you do not loose track of what is so important in our profession.

I do not want to look back on my life one day and realize that I wasted my time on giving in to other people's mediocrity. I am going to fight for what I believe is important and even if I lose a fight, that does not mean that I have lost the battle.

GHS delayed - again

Sounds familiar? According to the Office of Management and Budget, the review of the final rule has again been delayed. I remember that I went through an informational session two years ago and that the expectations were high that we all would soon be on one page, that the global system would be in place soon. So how come that we here in the US have to be at least one if not two or three steps behind, that other countries are using the system but that we cannot get the final rule into place?

Too much to loose

Graphic video clip about hand injury.

Safety Beacon - Caps and Plugs

The Truth Behind Big Words

Let me throw this idea out at you: Do you still be believe in the big words of CEO's and other big shots in companies that their goal is to make sure that people work safe and have healthy and safe workplaces for the sake of the employees? It took me a while to grow up and to understand that the foremost and only goal is to make sure that there are no recordables or lost time because that makes the company (and the CEO or whomever) a) look bad, b) costs more money, and c) raises a red flag with OSHA (or other regulatory institutions) which then closes the circle, because we are starting again with a).

It is all either about money or appearance. It is never out of ethical or moral reasons, out of the goodness of people's heart (reader's excluded - you know whom I am talking about, right, I am sure you know plenty of those folks in the above paragraph).

So - I guess I am no longer so naive. Too bad really. Because my faith in humanity gave me the passion and enthusiasm for my job. I'm not quite sure anymore how I am going to get that back. If you have an idea, please share it with me...