Deep Dive Into Behavioral & Workplace Safety | Know All The Things- Safety Buzz

Dear Reader,

This newsletter is all about behavior safety, and mental health at the workplace. The topics covered in this newsletter are essential for anyone who works or intends to work in a setting where they might be exposed to potential harm.

By reading and understanding these topics, you're ensuring that you're up to date on the latest initiatives and developments related to behavior safety and mental health at the workplace. In this edition of the newsletter, we will cover-

• What is Behavioral Safety and Why Should You Care?
• ?How to ensure workplace safety for employees
• Workplace Safety precautions you should follow
• How a safety leader can contribute to a mentally healthier workplace

What is Behavioral Safety and Why Should You Care?

Behavioral Safety is a set of practices that aim to improve safety by changing the behavior of workers at the workplace. It is also called “Behavior modification”.

In recent years there has been an increase in behavioral safety or behavior modification approaches. These approaches generally involve observing and assessing certain behaviors, usually of front-line personnel.?

It is an important part of workplace safety, and it can help to prevent hazardous situations from occurring. By implementing behavioral safety practices, you can help to keep your employees safe and reduce the chances of accidents occurring.

Behavioral safety programs are designed to ensure that all workers are aware of their responsibilities and that they know how to safely perform their duties.?

The Energy Institute (2011) provides the following helpful definitions:

Behavior Observation:

Any formal program of comparing by observation of workplace behaviors with pre-planned arrangements (e.g. safety-critical procedures, work permits, method statements).

Behavior Modification:

A systematic approach to achieving a change in ‘at risk’ behavior whilst positively reinforcing safe behavior (e.g. by coaching, system changes, or other means).

Advantages of behavioral safety approaches

?Any intervention that can have a positive effect on safety performance is worth considering. The research literature shows that these approaches can be successful in reducing unsafe behaviors in the workplace.

There are other less tangible benefits, including:

• Management demonstrates their commitment to improving safety
• The workforce and management talk to each other about safety
• Increased profile of health and safety
• Managers/supervisors learn to act promptly on unsafe acts

Increasing the chances of safety

Behavioral safety interventions are only one aspect of ‘human factors’ and these programs are only one tool in the safety practitioner’s toolbox.? One should be aware of the limits of such interventions and prepare the ground before attempting such an intervention.

For a behavioral intervention to prosper, there needs to be:

• An appropriate balance between production and safety
• Visible and real management of health and safety
• A high level of trust between management and employees.

In 2004 M. Anderson presented a paper on “Behavioral Safety and Major Accident Hazards: Magic Bullet or Shot In The Dark” at the Hazards conference and outlined his concerns on the use of such approaches in major hazard facilities:-?

These programs tend to focus on intuitive issues and personal health and safety, ignoring low probability/high consequence risks.

• If successful, behavioral interventions will reduce accidents and ill-health of personnel.
• A tendency to focus on individuals and fail to address management behaviors and decisions, which have a significant impact on safety performance.
• A focus on training and procedures as mechanisms to improve safety performance, rather than focusing on engineering or design solutions.?
• There was a mindset that the industry had perfected engineering and technology but incidents were still occurring due to inadequate engineering design.

More studies on Behavioral Safety:-

Behavior modification programs: establishing best practice. Offshore Technology Report 048, HSE (2000). This report will assist the reader in designing, implementing, and improving safety behavior modification programs.?

Safety Culture Maturity Model, HSE (2000), Offshore Technology Report. OTO 2000/049.

This model will assist organizations in establishing their current level of safety culture maturity and identifying the actions required to improve their culture.

Changing Minds: A practical guide for behavioral change in the oil and gas industry. Step Change (2000). This report aims to provide a practical framework for the process of identifying behavioral issues and taking effective action to address them.

Safety culture surveys have been very popular in recent years and these initiatives are usually aimed at understanding and optimizing the attitudes of front-line personnel rather than investigating management attitudes and behaviors.

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Here To Ensure Workplace Safety for employees

A safe work environment is essential for both employees and employers alike. It is the right of all employees to have safety in the workplace.

Well-implemented safety measures keep employees safe and also protect industrial equipment. It is the responsibility and duty of employers to protect their employees and keep them safe.

It is not possible to measure the effects of human casualties. They can have grave consequences for employees and their families and friends as well.

This is why workplace safety and health measures are necessary. They are essential for the well-being of employers and employees alike. The feeling of assurance that one has, knowing that he will return safely from work, is more significant than anything else.

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Workplace Safety Precaution You Should Follow

To help ensure?the workforce is?protected and?workers?get home safely each day,?all?employees?should actively play a role in upholding?an organization’s?workplace safety?

All employees must be fully invested and?committed?to?these?workplace safety tips?to help create a safer work environment.?

When the workforce shows a dedication to safety, different risks and hazards?on-site?can be quickly identified and?corrective actions can be set.???

Let’s take a closer look-

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How A Safety Leader Can contribute to a mentally healthier workplace

“To be safe, one must also feel safe”?

Feeling unsafe at work is hurting people, and more must be done to combat this in a holistic way.

As a leader, your job is to keep your workers safe from harm, and it’s proven to be a big enough task just to ensure their physical safety that companies assemble entire safety teams to avoid all kinds of accidents, incidents and injuries of a physical nature.

The state of an employee’s mental health is just as important—maybe even more important—as their physical health.

But how does a safety professional properly protect an employee’s mental well-being, particularly when you don’t even know what it is that’s threatening them? How do you protect a person from something they themselves might not even be able to identify or define?

What Can You Do?

Safety leaders can contribute to a mentally healthier workforce in the following ways:

• Cultivate relationships built on trust and respect with employees.
• Apply active listening skills and emotional intelligence in daily interactions with employees.
• Provide appropriate guidance and assist employees with workload management.
• Be aware of and notice the signs of increased stress or burnout in employees.
• Encourage employees to take time off when needed.

Source: EHS Today

Bonus: The importance of psychological safety

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Bonus 2-Safety Attitudes at Work

In today's world, it is essential to stay safe at work. No one wants to be a victim of an accident, and unfortunately, accidents do happen. By following some safety guidelines and keeping up-to-date with the latest developments in safety technology, you can reduce your chances of becoming a victim.

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Do you have any safety tips that you would like to share with our readers? Let us know in the comments below!

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