Workplace safety and secrecy
Now that the movie The Secret has been featured on Oprah, I’m sure it will get even more attention. So how can you apply the principles of “The Secret” to safety in the workplace?
When I worked as a director of security for a conversion operation that was part of a major corporation, I was always frustrated by the negative approach taken towards security. When one of my maintenance workers was injured while trying to implement a safety tip, I knew we were taking the wrong path in creating a safe workplace.
Long before I knew about the law of attraction or any of those concepts, I knew that wherever we put our focus, we’ll get more. When we focused on accidents, we got more accidents. Even if we thought we were trying to prevent them.
Almost every security program I’ve studied has shown an increase in TCIR or whatever measure is used during the first few months of plan implementation. This increase is generally attributed to people reporting accidents they once ignored and other factors. However, the law of attraction explains it clearly: what you think about expands.
It usually takes time for a safety program to mature to the point where it stops focusing on accidents and eliminating hazards and starts focusing on designing a safe and healthy work environment.
Once that shift in focus happens, the injury rate seems to magically drop. For those who still use a cause and effect model of life, it is difficult to find what caused the decrease in injuries. Often they will pick one element of the program and try to roll it out across the company. Usually, to the anger of other security professionals.
Now that I understand the law of attraction, I can point you to some factors that will improve any security program:
1. Create a positive atmosphere where people enjoy working. This goes against the instincts of many managers, but it will not only reduce injuries, it will also improve productivity.
2. Promote a feeling of security. Teaching people the correct way to do a job so they are not subject to hazards. Don’t tell him how to avoid injury. Tell them how to do the job safely.
3. Expect employees to work safely. Many security managers seem happy to catch people without their security team. Handing out STOP cards and minor fines only adds to the vibe of insecurity.
4. Safety design in machines and work practices from the beginning. A well-designed machine and efficient work practices will promote the completion of a job safely and efficiently. There will be no reason for an employee to look for an unsafe shortcut if the proper procedure works as it is supposed to.
5. Make sure employees know you care about keeping that work environment safe on an ongoing basis. There is nothing worse than having security as the “flavor of the month” until the next accident.
These five simple steps can be the key to not only reducing your injury rates, but also creating a more profitable workplace.
