Breathe life into safety

Does your workplace have a safety culture? Consider these three stories. Some years ago Dr Luise Vassie, now head of research and technical services at the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), was running training courses in safety for industrial work teams. She asked one of the operatives handling a largely manual job if she thought there were any improvements that would make her job safer. "Why are you asking?" she replied. "I am told what to do." Next. I recently visited a factory that is first rate in every respect bar one. It was unusually hot and several operators had brought electric fans on to the shopfloor. With cables stretching across cells and pathways, the result was potentially lethal. Yet this is a well-trained, thoughtful and committed workforce in every other way. Finally, an anecdote from Dr Alan McLenaghan, MD of Saint-Gobain Glass UK, whose Eggborough plant has worked over 1.4 million hours without a single lost time injury: "I hold my hand up to once having been well and truly caught. In a glass plant, you never know what you carry on the soles of your shoes. So our shower areas have different coloured flooring for where you can wear boots and where you must only wear flip flops. One day, an engineer appeared through clouds of steam and looked down disapprovingly at my bare feet. He explained to me exactly what the risks were. The next day he arrived with a pair of flip flops for me from the store. It was the right attitude and the right action; he didn't just tell me to fix it, he fixed it for me. And the only blame in the whole exchange was that which I heaped upon myself for not practising what I preach." What's my point? The first company had no safety culture at all; the second thought it had, but it was wrong; and the third has safety running through its arteries. Dr Vassie puts it in a nutshell: "Of course you can tell people 'do this – don't do that.' But if you can involve them in coming up with the answers, you are much more likely to get commitment. One of the key things to any improvement programme is getting people to realise they have a contribution to make and a part to play, no matter what their position in the organisation." Vassie outlines some basic steps for any business aiming at a safety culture. Firstly, avoid acting on a whim because a certain initiative is in vogue. "You need to take a long hard look at where you are now and even be prepared to hear things you might not want to hear." To do this, some companies use a formal measuring process; consultancies and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) can provide tools to do it. As well as covering bread-and-butter safety issues like reporting procedures, the process should also investigate management commitment and the workforce's own perceptions of their involvement in improvement measures. Employee surveys with a specific safety focus and follow-up interviews can also provide a good start point. In either case, the purpose is to flag up weaknesses to form the basis of an action plan. Vassie says it's important to see what's really driving negativity. "It can be something relatively simple like the wrong equipment or layout." But if the issues are more deep-seated, a behavioural safety programme is probably the most effective route to all-round safety awareness. In outline, these programmes help a group of workers – with input fromsafety professionals – to agree on the behaviour they want to see in their area. At intervals, team members or work teams from elsewhere in the business observe normal working, talk to people about their job, ask why they are doing things in that particular way and challenge unsafe behaviour. "If you use observers from another area," explains Vassie, "they bring a fresh pair of eyes, often seeing things that have been accepted without question. It stimulates co-operation and a culture of looking out for each other." IOSH provides an excellent guide on behavioural safety programmes and safety cultures (see box item, p59). Let's see how these programmes work in practice. The 3M site in Aycliffe, County Durham, employs 425 people producing respirators for both healthcare and industrial uses. The threat of a swine flu has boosted its order book hugely and an additional production line was installed in June. The winner of numerous safety awards, this site is the first within 3M Europe to achieve four million hours – or more than five years – without a lost time injury accident. With the full support of its union, it has been running a behavioural safety programme for 10 years; nine of them in parallel with a focus on personal well-being. Adrian Hughes, the site's environmental health and safety manager says that although there are a lot of programmes on offer, simply taking one off the shelf doesn't work: "We felt some programmes are just too formal in their methodology for people on the shopfloor to feel comfortable with." Instead, Aycliffe personalises its own, calling it PAWS (Preventing Accidents With Safe behaviour). "It helps people to have a dialogue with their workmates about unsafe behaviour without embarrassing either of them – and to praise safe behaviour as well. That's really important." Aycliffe has over 150 people trained to carry out one-to-one safety dialogues. Last year over 3,600 were recorded and each is given a weighting or score – similar to risk assessment – to monitor and prioritise corrective actions. This information is also used to identify behavioural trends in the workplace and influences the safety programmes the site promotesthroughout the year. "We actively promote health and wellbeing with topical subjects that don't necessarily relate to the workplace," explains Hughes. Recently, these have included drink and drug awareness, stress management and bowel cancer. Aycliffe identifies the topics through employee surveys and questionnaires. "If you talk to people about aspects of health and safety that they have a personal interest in, then the message gets through. That way, you can better influence their mindset towards health and safety in the workplace." Engaging the workforce is fundamental to all Aycliffe's improvement initiatives. "Our local three-year strategic plan is based on feedback from them," says Hughes. "This information is used to build programmes that are balanced to meet corporate requirements and individual needs." Regular activities take place in working hours. They include events to promote healthy eating, physical activity and behavioural workshops. Guest speakers are occasionally imported, including the Durham police road casualty reduction officer who gave road safety and 'wisedrive' workshops. Aycliffe has also invited motivational speakers like Ken Woodward – who was blinded in a workplace accident – to share life-changing experiences. Hughes is realistic about the barriers to a safety culture. To him, the biggest is a lack of strategy to drive improvement – and no strategy will succeed without senior management support and active visible leadership. He is also clear that no-one should try to run before they can walk; if you expect immediate results, you will be disappointed. "To really affect and improve a safety culture you have to be in for the long haul, to be committed and lead by example." Many companies report difficulties in widening people's focus beyond their immediate area and their own mates. Hughes believes the behavioural safety programme addresses that by painting a picture of the consequences of things going wrong. "This all helps us to create an environment where people aren't afraid to challenge the norms and identify improvements. Individuals will engage in a one-to-one safety dialogue about issues wherever they see them around the site. If unsafe acts or conditions are spotted, then we look for personal commitment to bring about positive change. This means either coming up with a solution to improve working practices or co-operating with others to achieve improvement." Here's another anecdote. Safety shoes are sensible and compulsory in the workplace. But one employee told Hughes that he is now wearing them at home to cut the grass."They've really understood what the message is about." Safety culture can, however, have even wider impact. Employees' general attitude to their work and to their managers changes when they can see their own safety and wellbeing top the priorities. "People know when their employers are genuinely committed to creating a safe environment for them. It makes them feel more valued as people." Hughes tells them: "All I want is for us all to turn up and go home in one piece. Being injured doesn't just affect you; it affects your family, your friends and your workmates. People will buy into these values and beliefs." "We have a saying here at Aycliffe: 'Nothing we do here is worth getting hurt for. If it doesn't feel right then don't do it.'" To Hughes, credibility is vital: "Don't over-complicate things; engage the people who know best – those doing the job. And be sure to give feedback. There is nothing worse than an employee proposing a safety suggestion which doesn't get an answer from a supervisor or manager." He believes that involving people makes them feel empowered, invigorated and energised in the workplace. "This is a win-win situation for both the organisation and the individual – and their families." Aycliffe periodically reviews objectives and goals. "You need to make sure you're working on the right things and constantly review your strategy," explains Hughes. "At the end of the day, there are many things we can measure but the true measure of success is increasing the mean time between accidents." The issue of measurement can be a thorny one. Vassie points out that when people start looking out for each other, it can actually bring about an increase in minor accidents and near misses. "Although the statistics may temporarily look bad, it's actually a good thing because you are encouraging people to look rather than walk on by. The more things that are reported, the more opportunities there are to learn from them." Of course, businesses in large corporations judging performance purely through straight site-by-site comparisons may stack up problems for themselves. It's probably wisest to issue a warning well before the start of any improvement activity and hope HQ understands that a statistical blip is no reason to shirk what's right. Building a safety culture doesn't even break the bank. Hughes says the costs are minimal: "There's a wealth of expertise ready and willing to help get the message across." Aycliffe has a strong relationship with local organisations like the local police and the Primary Care Trust who provide expert advice free of charge. "A behavioural safety programme has an initial cost but it soon becomes self-sufficient. I can honestly say that when it comes to safety at 3M, cost is not an issue." Accidents cost money and cause disruption. They affect productivity and avoiding them saves any organisation time and resources. But to Hughes, that is not the main argument: "People not getting hurt as a result of their work is beyond price. The key is not to call safety a number one priority, as priorities change. Here at Aycliffe we call it a core value. It's an integral part of how we do business."