OSHA recently reported that there were about 5,190 workplace fatalities in 2017. This is almost a 7% increase over 2016. I expect that this partly reflects the higher levels of business activity and more people who are working. Still, every single number reflects a personal tragedy – the death of a worker.
The causes of many of these fatalities are not addressed in much of our safety work, which is largely focused on slips, trips and falls. A lot of the events causing fatalities seem to come from very unexpected directions. These surprising events catch us quite unprepared. A key finding: All of our safety efforts over the last 5-6 years have not had much impact in reducing the number of fatalities which have been at about 4,800 per year until the jump in 2017.
Here is a three-step approach that will make a difference:
- First, open up the conversations about potential, really unusual events that could happen as we do our work. As you talk together, have toolbox or weekly safety meetings and ask yourselves to think way outside of the box and imagine what unusual events could happen that could seriously injure or kill you. (Actually these unusual events will happen at some point in the future, so we need to take them seriously.) Ideas will come from all directions as you talk together. The people actually doing the work will have good ideas about what can kill them if things go wrong. Ideas will also come up from reading safety magazines like Professional Safety. Articles in the newspapers about recent tragedies may have some important ideas. A process of brainstorming could be useful. Keep track of your conversations as ideas emerge over time and post them where everyone can see them.
- Second, talk about the things that are in place that will protect you in the event one of these fatal events does happen. What are these protections and will they really work? If the protections are not sufficient, then talk together about what needs to be put into place so that the unexpected event will not kill you. Create a synthesis of all you know and have learned so that new perspectives and preventions can be put into place. For example, as I watched the testing of my home generator, the maintenance man opened the electrical switch box in the basement to test the relays. I asked him how he protected himself from an unexpected electrical flash. He said he turned away from the panel so a flash would not hurt him. We talked about the potential for a flash and that people have been seriously burned and blinded by a flash. Just turning away was not going to help him much and I suggested that he talk with his supervisor about this and use additional protection. I also suggested some websites he could find useful. I hope he followed through.
- Third, be open to the emergence of new, unusual ideas and suggestions that come out of freely flowing conversations and the synthesis of new insights and knowledge. Some ideas may mean that you talk over each job to be sure you have thought about the unexpected. Maybe a new or different piece of protective equipment is needed. Maybe a reminder about not cutting corners on the procedures is needed. Is extra help needed? Ask yourselves questions about how to do things differently, about new ways to protect yourselves and avoid serious injuries and fatalities. There is a huge amount of information available that can be very useful so steps to better protect you can be developed and used.
These three steps are simple yet are very powerful ways to reducing the chances of a serious injury or fatality:
- Open up the conversations about the very unusual and unexpected events that could seriously injure or kill you, and keep track of your thinking.
- Think about the things that are in place that will protect you and decide if they are really sufficient. Synthesize and blend together all the ideas and other information you have into developing better ways about how you will protect yourselves in the event of a serious or unexpected event.
- As you open up the conversations, synthesizing and blending information and ideas about how to better protect yourselves, new ideas and ways to do things will emerge that will make a big difference in how you work, look out for each other and reduce the chances of a serious injury or fatality.
Your families and loved ones should expect no less from you.
In 2001, Jim C. Collins wrote the best-selling management book, Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t. It described how companies transition from being good companies to great companies and how most companies fail to make that transition. The author found that focused leadership, clear expectations and alignment, and staying true to their field of major competence was key. There were other factors about greatness that showed up too – like Leaders being humble, and high employee engagement – employees being in tune with the company’s purpose, mission, endeavors, goals – not just the business side of things, but on the people side of the enterprise. Line organizations integrated information; people were involved, included and respected – because getting the right people in the right places was deemed as essential too. Entire organizations were communicating, collaborative, and cooperating.
Violence at work is a growing problem. Shootings are becoming one of the leading causes of workplace deaths. Many organizations are having the local law enforcement people come in and do active shooter programs. This is a start. Preventing workplace violence has several aspects and becoming aware of how vulnerable your workplace may be, requires a physical-safety and psychological-safety assessment. These problems just don’t happen overnight in most cases. When someone is struggling with a serious problem at home or at work and have to just keep it to themselves, they get more and more lonely and resentful. If they are subjected to bullying and harassment things get bad, quickly. Stuff can build up to a tragedy. (How well do your supervisors know their people?)
As I travel around and watch things happening, I see so many people in a big hurry. We are coming to the end of the good weather so people are hurrying to get outside jobs finished up. Roofers are really busy and not taking the time to properly use and secure their fall protection. I read of a recent 29-story fall in New York City when a guy on a big construction site fell through an unsecured hole in the floor.
A good, proven approach is to have brief start up meetings to review the hazards of the day’s work, making sure we have the right PPE and other equipment in place and used, asking each other about what might go wrong and working to avoid this. We need to look over the schedules and be sure we have the equipment we need and the right people for the work.
Employee engagement has long been a concern to the U.S. workforce…it is a vital component of employee attraction and retention. Yet, with all the leadership programs targeted to “engage better with employees,” there hasn’t been a significant shift in relationships.
In the June 2017 issue of EHS-Today is an article about engaging and training workers as a foundation block for an effective safety program, while applying critical thinking principles. The intent, of course, is to seek out more and more opportunities to have people involved and participating in safety risk assessment, engaging at a grassroots level for finding solutions and training whole teams in the entire process. At a deep level, each of us knows that having people involved and with you in moving your business or organization forward is a good thing!
I just saw an announcement that the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety was closing after 59 years, to reduce costs. The ISO 45001 Standard is in the final stages and is aimed at improving safety around the world. Yet some people are reacting that it will not make a difference because of management indifference or cost restraints.
Many of you who have been reading this newsletter know that our emphasis is on Partner Centered Leadership. We emphasize the importance of supervisors and managers getting into their workplaces each day and talking with the people. Talking with the people is a key to breaking through to safety excellence. Talking about the risks they face each day, how they are managing them, how their kids are doing, how the safety is doing, how the business is doing, asking them what they see as to ways to improve their own work, asking about problems they are dealing with, etc. Doing this with respect and really listening are vitally important.
The American Society for Safety Engineers (soon to be The American Society for Safety Professionals) in Denver, Colorado, on June 19-22, 2017, was attended by about 5,000 people. This was a record for attendance. There were lots of papers and a huge trade show exhibit. I never saw so much safety equipment and other offerings.
