The safety culture within a workplace isn’t just inclusive of PPE and checklists. It’s actually a lot more than that. A true safety culture extends far beyond PPE, warning signs, and the administrative checklists; it’s also defined by the shared attitudes, daily behaviors, and values on how work is actually done.
It’s the difference between obeying the rules in place out of fear of punishment and acting safely out of personal responsibility for the care of oneself and for their colleagues.
With that in mind, here are some of the key characteristics of a strong and proactive safety culture, as well as how to achieve it for your own business this year.
Key characteristics of a proactive safety culture in the workplace
There are some key characteristics to work towards when it comes to achieving a proactive safety culture in the workplace. This includes:
Leadership that leads by example
Management that actively participates in safety, rather than just harping about it but not actually partaking, is a good way of encouraging others to follow suit.
Psychological safety to speak up
When you have a great safety culture in place, employees will feel safe reporting near misses, hazards, and any concerns they may have without fear of punishment. That ability to speak freely without worry is something that is incredibly important to have.
A proactive rather than reactive response
A strong safety culture is all about having a proactive rather than reactive response when preventing incidents before they occur.
Learning over blame
It’s easy to point the finger and get someone to take accountability. However, instead of always reverting to the blame game, it’s good to see mistakes as learning opportunities that help improve systems, rather than just to discipline individuals for making those errors.
Integration with daily work
Safety must be embedded into the business’s core processes, values, and KPIs. From the procedures taken when hiring new staff, like proper vetting procedures and drug testing, to policies in place that help ensure every staff member has the safety support they need.
It helps employees make safety second nature rather than it being somewhat of a laborious, extra task.
Empowered employees
Workers who are involved in developing safety procedures will be more likely to follow them and encourage further refinement down the line.
How to achieve a strong safety culture in your business this year
It’s important to achieve a strong safety culture in your business. Achieving that takes a lot of effort and dedication from every team member who exists in the workforce. It’s not just about those who put it into action, but the rate of adoption that matters too.
With that being said, here are a few ways in which you can achieve a strong safety culture for your business this year.
1. Lead from the top
As mentioned already, in order to make it stick, you need to lead from the top. Managers must visibly follow all safety procedures and take action when any concerns are raised by staff members. It’s an attitude that everyone should have equal concern and proactivity towards.
2. Encourage open reporting
In order for this safety culture to thrive in a positive way, it’s good to implement a ‘no-blame’ culture. Where near-misses and hazards exist, these can be reported without fear and as such, allow for early correction.
3. Engage employees
You must engage employees when it comes to involving them in staff risk assessments and safety meetings. These help to foster shared ownership in the workplace, which is important when it comes to creating a group effort towards safety in general and how it’s implemented as well as adopted.
4. Regular training
To help your staff thrive in the workplace and utilize safety procedures, regular training is important to provide. Use toolbox talks as well as refresher training to keep safety knowledge as current and practical as can be. Without training, safety efforts can slip and fall down the chain of priority for a lot of staff.
5. Invest in equipment and systems
To help provide your staff with the right environment and equipment, it’s good to ensure all tools are being well-maintained and that the safety policies themselves are easy to access.
6. Review and improve
Lastly, make sure to conduct regular audits, using employee feedback as a way to continuously update safety protocols. It’s this consistency in upkeep for your safety protocols that will continue to keep them implemented successfully.
Safety culture is a lot more than you think as a business, so make sure you’re following the above advice to provide a safe environment for all your staff.
Photo by Ümit Yıldırım on Unsplash
