Safety culture is the attitude, perception, values, and beliefs that employees share about safety in a workplace.
In workplaces, there will always be a way people do things. The way they react to issues. The way they respond to incidents and accidents, the way the workers work and manage productions.
Safety culture is part of the organizational culture. The management plays a vital role in safety culture. Safety culture is the way people do things in their organizations.
We have strong safety culture and weak safety culture. However, strong safety culture enhances good safety behaviours, but weak safety culture promotes poor safety behaviours.
Most of all, organisations with strong safety cultures do not mean they are immune to accidents or incidents. but it is less likely to have an accident in that organization.
Organizations that are not committed to safety at some point will have a breakdown even when they have complied with some aspects of work regulations and procedures.
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Good safety culture.
Management should be the first link in safety commitment in the workplace. At all times, the root cause of accidents is always tied to management actions and inaction.
The management commitment still trickles down to achieving a higher safety culture. The management needs to commit time and resources.
The commitment such as having safety and health policies and mandatory safety directives should be present as well.
A good safety culture will not suddenly happen when you start putting measures in place. Measures like a robust safety management system, a trained workforce, a good work environment and safe working procedures. A good safety culture will gradually evolve with time.
The safety program and other work procedures should not be mere documents. It should be a program that will have an increased effect on hazard and near-miss reporting among workers.
The value of safety training is great. If you want to achieve a high level of safety in a workplace; safety training among workers is the right way to go.
A worker trained on how safe to carry out his work and on several topics will show a better safety commitment to his job, company, and other co-workers.
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Motivation and incentives.
However, workers respond to incentives and motivations while at work. There should be a reward for good safety behaviours and poor safety behaviours in the workplace.
This will help to promote good safety culture over time. Rewarding good safety behaviours will motivate workers to be better, and the safety culture of the workplace will be increasing.
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Onyeka Emma is a QHSE Professional with more than 10 years of experience in occupational health and safety, which spans many industries such as construction, beverage, oil and gas, etc. He has many health and safety certifications, including NEBOSH IGC, ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, and ISO 45001:2018 Lead auditor certificate. A member of IOSH, ISPON, and Nigeria Red Cross Society. He is interested in business, entrepreneurship, Speaking, and motivating people to do better for themselves. He enjoys leisure with a good motivational book.
