The Voluntary Reporting System

The benefit of a Voluntary Reporting System (VRS) is fairly obvious; if hazards and errors are reported, then risk controls can be put into place to mitigate future occurrences. This in turn creates a safer working environment, reduced exposure to litigation, as well as a more profitable organization. A VRS is an important element of a safety management system (SMS). However, since an SMS is not mandatory for all operators [at the current time], some organizations have not espoused the benefits of a VRS.

The Heinrich Ratio states that, for every fatal accident, there will be three to five nonfatal accidents and 10 to15 incidents; but there will also be hundreds of unreported occurrences. Unreported occurrences are extremely problematic since no risk controls can be deployed if nobody knows these occurrences exist. However, the resistance encountered in implementing an effective VRS generally stems from employees’ fear of retribution or punishment for disclosing such information. From a personal standpoint, employees may understand the advantages of voluntary safety reporting, but in practical terms, they may also feel that the potential punitive implications for reporting hazards and errors far outweigh the advantages.

The foundation for a successful VRS is a Just Culture. A Just Culture is a culture that acknowledges that well-intentioned people still make mistakes and they should not be punished for the errors they never intended to commit. Yet, a line is still drawn where willful violations and purposeful unsafe acts will still be addressed by punitive measures. The general indications are that only around 10 percent of actions contributing to bad events are judged as culpable (Reason, 2004, as cited in Global Aviation Information Network, 2004, p. vi). A Just Culture includes trust. Employees must know that they can report without sanction. Once this trust is established, then an organization can have a reporting culture, something that provides the system with an accessible memory, which, in turn, is the essential underpinning to a learning culture (p. vi).

Along the same lines, Eiff (1999) suggests that, “An effective and systematic reporting system is the keystone to identifying the weakness and vulnerability of safety management before an accident occurs. The willingness and ability of an organization to proactively learn and adapt its operations based on incidents and near misses before an accident occurs is critical to improving safety.”

Are you ready to start your VRS? If so, there are a number of steps that you will need to take in order to get your basic VRS up and running. These steps include:

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Promotion and Buy-In

You will need to communicate why a VRS is going to be established within your organization. Upper-level buy-in is a must. In fact, those people within the highest positions of the company should make it clear (as in your company’s signed Safety Policy) that the VRS is non-punitive and has the complete support of management.

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A VRS Department

Depending on the size of your organization, you may need to create a VRS department, which should be part of your SMS, if one exists. Larger organizations might want to create a dedicated position for the VRS, but smaller organizations may do well by delegating the VRS functions to a safety manager or someone else in a safety position.

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Data Collection

You will need to determine what type of data collection form will be used. In some cases, you may want to develop your own form based on your organization’s specific requirements and profile. The form should have both paper and online submittal options for employees. Once the form has been developed, you should determine and convey reporting thresholds to employees. In other words, what is reportable? You probably don’t want to hear about someone breaking a latch on their lunchbox, but you most certainly would want to hear about a string of similar errors that employees are making while operating a drill press. Remember that these are voluntary, not mandatory, reports (they are not required to be submitted).

Database?

You will need to develop a VRS database. For smaller organizations, the database can be fairly simple and created with programs such as Microsoft Excel?. However, larger organizations may require more powerful software that can be custom designed for your specific needs. The importance of a good database cannot be overemphasized since this will provide you with search ability, trending analysis, and graphics that will help tremendously with your data analysis. A good SMS software program will have customizable VRS functionality built right in.

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Investigations?

In addition to maintaining the VRS database, the person in charge of the VRS may also be responsible for event investigations, which may be delegated to other trained individuals. It should be noted that investigations in this context are conducted not to assign blame or punish employees, but rather to determine why an event occurred, so that the same type of event does not happen again in the future. Remember, this is all part of a Just Culture.

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Employee Feedback

Provide feedback to employees. This is one of the most important parts of the VRS and yet many organizations stop short at this stage. The concept is very simple; take all of the information that is obtained through the collection and investigation of reports and then let your employees know what is being done. For certain reasons, many organizations seem to overlook or omit this important part of the VRS. It’s all about transparency. In order to gain credibility, buy- in, and show genuine concern, the safety team must offer feedback to employees on a consistent basis. And it all starts with a simple, “Thank you for submitting your report.” After that, feedback can come in many forms. Some methods for presenting feedback include safety meetings, bulletin board announcements, emails, monthly newsletters, or a combination of these. The point is that feedback lets employees know that the reports they are taking time to submit are actually being addressed and acted upon. This goes a long way in the preservation of an effective VRS. Voluntary reporting will stop if nothing is being done to address issues and/or there is little or no feedback in the process. I can guarantee you that.

In summary, a VRS is a very effective way to know ‘what’s going on below the waterline’ in order for the organization to act proactively. If these events rise to the surface, they can become incidents or accidents, and then the organization must act reactively, usually in a knee-jerk fashion.

For those organizations that have an interest in developing an effective VRS, it is hoped that this article, while very fundamental, provided some useful insights. Remember that a Just Culture includes a formal VRS. The purpose of a VRS is not to punish, but instead, to promote a culture of learning and continuous improvement by surfacing the otherwise unknown things that could precipitate a very expensive safety lesson.

References

Eiff, G. (1999). Organizational safety culture. Proceedings of the 10th International Symposium on Aviation Psychology (pp. 1-14). Columbus, OH: Department of Aviation.

Global Aviation Information Network. (2004, September). A roadmap to a just culture: Enhancing the safety environment.

Need help with your SMS? TACG can help! Click here to view all of our SMS courses and services.

Dr. Bob Baron conducts aviation safety training, consulting, and program implementation for aviation operators on a global basis.

Sensitive and knowledgeable about various cultures, Dr. Baron uses his 36+ years of academic and practical experience to assist aviation organizations in their pursuit of safety and quality excellence. He has extensive experience working with developing nations and island countries. He also provides training and consulting to some of the largest airlines and aircraft manufacturers in the world, as well as civil aviation authorities and accident investigation bureaus.

If your aviation organization is interested in improving its culture, implementing programs such as Human Factors, SMS, SSP, or LOSA, or have an external, unbiased safety audit/Gap analysis, please get in touch.

Dr. Baron’s company, TACG, provides numerous training, consulting, and auditing services. For more information, please go to https://www.tacgworldwide.com

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