How to get my workers to be safe?
I received an email today with the question "How to get my workers to be safe?" It came from somebody who I don't know. Yet she’s a safety professional who needs advice. I’m no expert, but let’s see what I come up with.
How to get my workers to be safe? Ya I sure know what that’s like. There isn’t a simple answer and the one I have is a long one, with examples and links.
The thing is, it’s going to happen again and again. It never stops. Yet it can be managed, if not for your own piece of mind. There is a saying in the safety culture that directly applies to our occupation. “You have to pick your battles”. Now I know that kinda sucks to hear, but you won’t be able to fix it all. So, try to fix the most serious ones first and work your way down. There is one thing that is completely true in construction.
First Rule of Safety
A construction site, especially a large one with hundreds of trades, will never ever be 100% completely safe. We as safety professionals can only do our best to make that environment happen without going crazy and mentally drained. Because the system is set up the wrong way from the start, we have must always follow the 1st rule of safety. Protect thy self.
Bet your asking what does that even mean. We are hired and paid by the very ones we have to oversee and make sure they are not shortcutting the Workers Compensation Act, the WorkSafe BC Regulations, as well as the companies own OH&S program, policies, and procedures. And when they do, we catch them, try to make things right and the wheel keeps turning round and round. It’s like a thief hiring a security guard to make sure they don’t steal.
But when we do they act surprised because we are actually doing our jobs. Some companies only want the appearance of safety. That way if the shit hits the fan they can turn and say “We have a safety person”. I’ve had OSOs from WorkSafe walk right by the site superintendent and come chat with me first.
At the end of the day, we need to eat and pay our bill too. And theirs the rub. The companies that hire us can fire us at will, because it all boils down to production and profit. So, realizing that it’s not all Black and White, theirs lots of gray in safety is the essence of picking your battles. Making a site 100% completely safe with no injuries, incidents, or accidents will not ever happen. And if that ever became true, we in safety are all out of work.
However, the flip side is this. I assume since you said “Foreman and Workers” you’re working for a sub and not a prime contractor. Yet either or, again “CYA”. If the crew is a complete gong show and just doesn’t give a shit you do have options.
Log Book
Have a hard bound log book with numbered pages. Beginning of each day copy the weather down in its entirety. The reason why we do this is for authenticity and truth in the notes we take down. As an onsite safety person, document everything.
What you saw as an unsafe act, who the person was, what you said to them, what they said to you, what any others workers said about the situation (foremen, supervisors, other workers, etc.), and what was the result or change in work procedures. I have a list here that might help.
Watch this video for a deeper understanding as to why we do this. Supervisors Logbook Following the chain of command, if somebody isn’t playing by the rules and after speaking to them, report it up the chain and remember to document it.
Up the Chain
- If the worker isn’t complying, talk to their foremen.
- If the Foremen isn’t complying, go to the Superintendent.
- If the Superintendent isn’t complying, speak to the Project Manager.
- If the PM isn’t complying, email the Company Owner, CEO, President etc.
- And finally, if nobody in the company wants to comply, you can always call WorkSafe BC and have an Occupational Safety Officer come to your site.
One thing though, the further up the chain you go, the more it might influence your employment in a negative way.
Behaviour Based Safety
Trying to change Behaviour Based Safety can be a process. Understanding why a worker continues to do what they do is an exercise that can be very daunting. So, in the short-term, aim south and hit the heart. Depending on the unsafe act, you can always explain that the end result if an accident occurs could be somebodies’ death. Ask them how they would feel if what they were doing caused the death of a co-worker or friend.
Or if they have kids, what their death on the job would do to the child waiting at home for them. Emotions can be a strong ally in certain cases. Show them examples in picture format. And in the case of managers and owners the end results could be huge fines and or jail sentences. Here’s a good example of both sides of that coin.
When it comes to fines and jail in the realm of safety, who ever is in charge is the one who pays the price. This is the one area were shit rolls uphill. I’ve effected change in behaviour by saying this. A lot of times, and in a worse case situation, if somebody goes to jail for a safety issue that resulted in a worker’s death, that person will be calling some big brute “daddy” with in an hour.
The look I get from that person, I can tell I just scared the shit out of them and now they are seriously thinking about it. Be advised though, this only works in certain types of working environments, with certain people.
Bring them a Gift
Bring them a gift. This only works for some trades. An example is, if you have a stick welder welding up pipe or what ever on a wood structure and they are just tossing their spend rods on the floor, we all know that could cause a fire. With in the Hotwork Permit and any welding Procedures is should state he tosses those rods when finished into a bucket of water. If he’s not doing that, bring him a bucket of water, the gift. Ask him to please us it, smile and leave. If he doesn’t still comply, go back to the "Up the Chain" list.
The same thing can be done for anybody using a Powder Actuated Tool. The unspent loads are usually a 22 caliber. They can still go off, bring them a bucket of water to toss them in. Anybody working on saws, drills, etc., bring them safety glasses and laser lite ear plugs. For other trades, you’ll have to find what might work best. Everybody likes a gift.
Toolbox Talk and Safety Meeting. Again, hit them in the fricken heart. I’ve discovered for that using the standard safety style toolbox talk or safety meeting format where you’re reading some narrative off one of those WorkSafe BC pre written pages has become very useless a lot of times. Most have heard it over and over again. In one ear and out the other. For that reason, I’ve gone in another direction.
I show them a mini movie. 10-minute auto / video presentations I can play during a break or just before lunch. You can create your own or even use one I’ve done. This one is for Scissor Lift and AWPs , watch it. Because of what I used for examples at the end of the video, I’ve had workers get lumps in their throats and swallow just a little harder and even brought some workers to tears.
Ahh, got you. Now they understand what I’ve been saying. Things started to charge for the better. Here's a full list of Toolbox Talks in Movie Mode . Some I’ve created, others were already done and I’ve just added them.
Last but not least, if nothing works and you can’t affect compliance or change, at the end of the day for your own piece of mind or to save any type of regret, you can give notice and quit. That one is a piece of advice I got years ago from a safety professional at Kearl Oil Sand Project when I consulted him on this very same issue.
The reason being, if you can’t get them to change and shit goes sideways it might result in a worker fatality. Chances are you’ll start second guessing your own decisions and might even start to blame yourself. I would save you from that pain by suggesting to you what was suggest to me. Quit, and don’t take that emotional baggage on. Remember the 1st rule of safety, “Protect Thy Self”
