One-quarter of employers not measuring safety participation
Health and safety managers all agree: if workers participate more in safety initiatives, safety performance will improve.
A new survey of 500 OHS professionals in Canada and the United States found if workers participate in things like training sessions, hazard reporting, safety meetings, job safety analysis and inspections, an organization’s safety will improve.
Fifteen per cent of survey participants believe that behaviour-based programs have a negative impact on safety culture, and 55 per cent think participation-based safety is most effective, found the survey by EHS Daily Advisor and eCompliance.
While 72 per cent of those polled believe management visibility into safety performance is “extremely important,” only 30 per cent of survey participants said that management has “complete visibility” into safety performance at their companies.
Just 1 in 10 OHS professionals surveyed are not currently reporting on or sharing safety analytics with senior executives. More than one-third (38 per cent) report on safety analytics monthly; 30 per cent weekly; and 10 per cent quarterly.
The number one key initiative being prioritized by respondents in the next 12 months is “Improving communication between the front-line workforce and management.”
Fourteen per cent of survey participants don’t measure safety participation at all, and an additional 10 per cent said that they don’t currently measure participation but plan to begin doing so within the next 12 months.
Among those respondents who do measure participation in their companies health an safety programs, their top three most popular tracking tools were: pen and paper or Excel sheets (49 per cent); employee engagement surveys (24 per cent); and safety management software (21 per cent).
