Safety Week 2023 | Supporting Strong Voices, Safe Choices

Construction safety is a critical issue that requires the utmost attention and care. Our industry is notorious for being one of the most dangerous professions in the world, with high rates of incidents, injuries, and fatalities. This is why it is essential to promote engagement among our people to help prevent incidents and create a safer working environment.??

Walter Wilkinson, Granite’s first president, had this powerful quote in the early years of the company: “Boldly contending for that which is right and firmly rejecting that which is wrong.” It’s a simple, impactful concept, and Mr. Wilkinson’s quote grew into the foundation for Granite’s Core Values. This quote is also aligned with the theme of Construction Safety Week this year: Strong Voices, Safe Choices.?

Strong Voices?

“Strong Voices” refers to the importance of empowering effective communication among workers, management, and other stakeholders in the industry. Communication ensures that everyone involved is aware of the potential hazards and how to control them. Strong voices can help us boldly contend for that which is right.?

Strong voices are important in construction safety because they can help us create a culture of safety. A strong voice is willing to speak up about unsafe working conditions or behaviors and take action before an incident occurs. In a culture with strong voices, workers are more likely to be aware of hazards and they are more likely to take safety seriously. A strong voice can help create this culture by leading by example and encouraging others to do the same.?

Strong voices help promote a culture of open communication where workers feel comfortable and are more likely to raise concerns about potential hazards and take actions to prevent incidents and injuries. In a culture with open communication, experienced workers provide guidance and mentorship to their coworkers, making sure they truly understand the risks associated with their work.?

Finally, strong voices are important because they create a culture of accountability. When someone violates safety procedures or takes unnecessary risks, a strong voice can step in and address the situation in the moment, providing correction and education that reduces the likelihood of a repeat. By holding people accountable, strong voices influence safe choices.?

Safe Choices?

Each of us make countless choices every day. Most of those choices are benign and inconsequential, but in the construction industry, the difference between safe and unsafe choices can mean the difference between life and death. Safe choices refer to the importance of workers making safe decisions when carrying out their duties. Workers who make safe choices are more likely to avoid incidents and injuries, as they are more aware of the potential hazards and how to prevent them.??

To truly set the expectation for safe choices, we must fully understand the factors that lead to unsafe choices. People make unsafe choices for a variety of reasons, some of which are inherent to our human nature, while others are influenced by external factors. One of the main reasons people make unsafe choices is our tendency to prioritize short-term gains over long-term consequences—the “this will only take me a minute” approach. Ego plays a large role in this. When someone routinely makes unsafe choices with no negative outcomes, they become overconfident. Think about how many times someone has said to you, “I’ve been doing it this way for 20 years!”?

Another reason people make unsafe choices is due to a lack of information or understanding. If workers are not adequately trained, or don’t understand the hazards associated with their assigned duties, they are likely to make uninformed and potentially unsafe choices.??

Then there are external factors: peer pressure, schedule, budget constraints, and company norms and expectations can also influence us. People make choices that align with the expectations of others around them, even if it goes against their own values or goals.?

Emotions and mental wellbeing can also play a significant role in choices that are made. Strong emptions such as fear, anger, or excitement can cloud judgement and lead individuals to make unsafe choices.??

We need to understand these factors to effectively counter them. In an environment where there is a true culture of safety, workers willingly commit to make safe choices—they firmly reject that which is wrong. Promoting this culture of safety in the construction industry is not always easy though. It requires a concerted effort from all involved, including workers, field supervision, and management.?

Strong voices empower safe choices. Without both in play, our industry would be a more dangerous place to work, and incidents and injuries would be far more common. By encouraging and embracing strong voices and safe choices, we are “Boldly contending for that which is right and firmly reject that which is wrong.”?