Safety Net Newsletter Summer 2008

Safety Comes From Words and Actions

This is taken from the book "Employer's Guide to Workers' Compensation" by Edward M. Welch of the Workers' Compensation Center at Michigan State University (www.lir.msu.edu/wcc). It is reprinted with the permission of the author.

"Nothing will reduce injuries and lower costs more than an effective safety program."

Does management understand how important safety is?
Workers' compensation costs can be dramatically reduced through an effective safety program. Still, in many companies, management does not recognize the importance of safety. J. Donald Millar, M.D., the former Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, commented to the House Education and Labor Committee: "Society puts a high value on safe water, safe streets, and even safe sex, but not as yet on safe working conditions."

Does management realize the potential payoff from a real commitment to safety?
DuPont is frequently cited as an example of a company with a real commitment to safety. It has 100,000 employees in the Unites States and averages 30 lost time claims a year. This figure is so good that some people refuse to believe it. I have cited it literally hundreds of times in talks to various groups. Often someone will come up to me at a break and say, "I used to work at DuPont." I wait, assuming that they are going to challenge my statement. Invariably they tell me, "It is a great place to work. You wouldn't believe how much emphasis they put on safety." Often they go on to tell some story that demonstrates the importance of safety at DuPont. Some companies do put a tremendous emphasis on safety, and it pays off in fewer injuries and lower workers' compensation costs.

Does management understand the importance of its commitment to safety?
The one element I see in every company with an outstanding safety program is a complete commitment from top management. You can make some gains without this commitment, but the companies that are able to make dramatic changes are those in which top management provides the leadership.

What is done to convey the message that top management is committed to safety?
While commitment of top management is a prerequisite to an effective safety program, that alone is not enough. Management must let all employees know of its commitment.

Is safety incorporated into corporate objectives, strategies and policies?
Safety has been listed as the number one corporate objective at DuPont for many years. One year in the 1980s DuPont decided not to number their corporate objectives. Quality, safety and other items were on the list, but the objectives were not numbered and safety was not at the top of the list. Injuries increased that year! Is this possible? Does anyone really pay attention to corporate objectives? The next year DuPont put the numbers back on, safety was number one, injuries went back down.

Do you provide adequate personnel and resources to safety programs?
Of course, the ultimate test of management's commitment to safety is whether it is willing to devote resources to a safety program. These resources might include, staff, materials such as protective clothing and equipment, and the time of line managers.

Is management aware that a good safety program will also improve morale, production, and quality?
Although safety programs cost money, there are many payoffs. The most clearly measurable payoff is reduced workers' compensation costs. There are also less measurable payoffs, such as avoiding the loss of production that results from injury. Many managers also report the things that are necessary for a good safety program, such as attention by management to the needs of workers, a rethinking of processes, and opening channels of communication, also increase productivity and improve quality.

Is there some clear way in which managers and supervisors are held accountable for safety?
Every employer should have some system. The performance or salary appraisal is how you tell people what is really important in your organization. If all the cost of workers' compensation comes out of some corporate account, then no one but the comptroller has any incentive to do anything about it and he or she is not in a position to make any difference. I advocate passing the costs of workers' compensation down the line as far as possible-but some reason has to be applied. A small department cannot be expected to absorb all the costs of every injury. Typically, companies charge the whole cost to a plant and pass on only a percentage of the costs to the department involved. Some companies, for example, charge a department for 20 percent of the losses. Others charge some arbitrary amount, such as $5,000, for each lost time injury.
Even if costs are not charged directly, there are other ways to create incentives. An employer can at least set a budget for workers' compensation and if there is a savings, let the manager use part of the money for extra help or new equipment. Another approach is to have a fund at the corporate level that can be used to pay the wages of a person who temporarily returns to work at light duty. The supervisor who can get an extra worker at no cost to his or her budget will be more willing to find light duty.

Is safety part of everyone's performance appraisal?
Companies that are serious about safety include safety as part of the performance appraisal of every employee.

Are there safety education programs for everyone?
Safety education should include everyone - managers, supervisors, and hourly workers.

Do workers' compensation costs get charged back to departments or supervisors?
If you charge the costs of work-related injuries to some corporate account, you take away the incentive for safety from the people who are in the best position to do something about it. The costs of work-related injuries should be passed down through the organization as far as possible. Supervisors who do not have time for safety in their areas might look at things differently if the cost of the workers' compensation case affected their bonuses.

Does workers' compensation loss data get back to departments or supervisors?
The collection of data is essential. It does no good, however, unless it gets to the people who can do something about the program. There should be some regular system for sharing data and information with managers and hourly workers.

Do you investigate a "near miss"?
It takes some effort to encourage reporting, but the most successful employers have systems that include the investigation of not only accidents but also situations that could have been accidents. These might include, for example, a slip and fall on a greasy floor, even though no one was injured; a metal chip flying away from a grinding machine, even though it did not strike the operator; or a forklift driver having to swerve to avoid hitting a worker at an intersection. Dealing with near misses literally allows you to avoid accidents before they happen.

Do you examine jobs with high absenteeism or turnover rates?
What is the reason people do not like to work on these jobs? There may be a hazard that could lead to injury.

Do you look for workers modifying their jobs or tools?
This is a sure sign of a problem. If Joe has rebuilt his work station with duct tape, there is something wrong. It may be a problem with the job, with the tools, or with Joe, but something should be done before it turns into a workers' compensation problem.

Do you listen to workers?
The workers who are doing the job are in the best position to know about hazards and to suggest ways to remedy them. It is very important that management seek input from its employees concerning safety.

Is there a way for a worker to report unsafe conditions without fear or reprisal?
In today's workplace, it is tempting for employers to assume that workers complain about even ordinary circumstances and sue over everything that is at all unusual. But behind the few who complain all the time, there are many who are actually afraid to report unsafe conditions. Employers should have some system for anonymous or protected reporting of hazards. Some employers do this through safety committees or a suggestion box. The best way to encourage reports of unsafe conditions is to establish a record of responding promptly and appropriately whenever hazards are reported.

Is there some follow-up to make sure that the unsafe condition is, in fact, corrected?
It is not enough to simply suggest to the maintenance department or line supervisor that a problem should be corrected. The safety system should include some follow-up to make sure that the correction is actually carried out.

Do you use any type of safety contest?
The safety contest is one of the most common types of safety programs. This has worked for many companies, but some safety experts question whether it is the best approach. It tends to encourage under-reporting as workers are encouraged by supervisors and co-workers not to report injuries or to charge them to group benefit plans. These contests also emphasize the negative. There is a reward if certain things do not happen. This is not the best way to modify behavior.

Do you post your progress?
The typical prize-for-no-lost-time program posts big signs in prominent places noting the progress that has been made. Posting the progress in a positive reward system will have an even greater effect.

Do you use some simple rewards?
Not all programs have to be complicated or formal. Some companies prefer simple, immediate rewards. One approach is to give out "slugs" that can be used in the coffee or soda machines. Following a training session on proper lifting techniques, all of the supervisors are given a supply of "slugs." Whenever they see a worker lifting in the proper manner, they give him or her a "slug".

Is there a cost to not implementing a safety recommendation?
Most safety recommendations will require that someone - a supervisor, an engineer, or the maintenance department - spend some time and devote some resources to solving the problem. You want to make it easier to solve the problem than to ignore it. One person told me that at her company, if a manager cannot comply with a recommendation, he or she must file a detailed written report within 72 hours explaining why not. This adds a cost to not complying.

We hear often about new loss prevention and safety initiatives that have great potential but fail. Management is committed to safety and starts a new program, but after a few weeks or a few months, everything returns to "normal". Following up is crucial to the success of a safety program. Everyone will be waiting to see what happens. If proper action is taken, it will add credibility to the program. If nothing happens, this will be seen as a signal that management is not really serious about safety.