Workplace Safety – Improving Hazard Sensitivity

Safety has always been the top priority for any organization, business or personal front. When we talk about safety, it includes the safety of persons as well as material. Nevertheless, human safety is the top priority for everyone. Here we are focusing mainly on workplace safety. Also, we will be talking about how improving hazard sensitivity among coworkers helps to make the workplace more secure.

Safety measures are not simple instructions but the culture of any organization. Everyone loves to work and live in a safe culture where the value of life has its importance. Apart from traditional ways, technology is also playing a role in safeguarding human lives. Along with improved technology, it is also the organization’s leadership that plays an important role in cultivating the sage culture towards workplace safety.

Organizations must act pro-active when it comes to the safety of people. It’s their leaders who take the lead and conduct multiple sessions or workshops to their employees. These leaders, pro-activity set the right framework, emergency teams, mock drills, etc. so that organizations have a better awareness of safety and right execution at the need of the hour. These actions from the leaders play an important role in changing the behavior of their employees. Also, employees feel themselves as empowered to take a step during any emergency.

Safety and safe culture start with self-learning or initiatives. It has been observed that many an organization has set guidelines for safety along with responsible teams. These organizations do perform mock drills of evacuation to their employees with the objective of workplace safety. Then it’s employees how seriously they take such workshops or drill.

As we know that technology is evolving, on the same lines, safety culture in organizations also is evolving. Here we will talk about different approaches responsible for the evolution of safety culture ensuring workplace safety.

Reluctant Approach

The reluctant approach is one where employees don’t care about safety. They have a belief that if some accident happens then it is part of business or part of risk only. People don’t bother for sharing their views but accept the guidelines being provided by the organization.

Reactive Approach

the reactive approach is the result of reactions after any event. Following the reactive approach, employees take the safety parameters seriously but only for a short period. The short period is defined as the time till the time some accident/incident is fresh in their memory. In the said approach, the organization manager feels a need to force the employees to follow the safety guidelines.

Analytical Approach

the analytical approach is where data is collected and analyzed before finalizing any new safety guideline or modifying the same. Following such an approach, employees trust that safety measurement teams are mature enough to frame the guidelines which the organization will be following.

Proactive Approach

The proactive approach is one where an employee starts predicting the incident and are ready with their resources and actions. Business Continuity Planning is an example of a proactive approach. In the said approach, management shared the bad news with employees yet work on various measurement statistics. Following a proactive approach, employees are evolved and trusted. They also believe and influence the way how the work must be executed in an emergency.

Generative Approach

A generative approach is an advanced approach where transparency is on priority. In this approach, employees trust the management and are willing to share all types of details. Management too has a clear picture in their mind of what all is going on in the business. The employee is sensible enough to understand the safety measures even if there is no real incident.

Evolved safety measures are not destinations but a journey. Organizations must ensure to cultivate the safety culture with rules and regulations. Leadership team decisions along with judgments and technical skills blend the evolved safety measures to the next level. The human factor in risk management plays an important role in this evolution. Moreover, organizations must follow an open culture where people feel challenged for betterment towards safety at every level.

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