Appropriate Use of Punishment

Some authors, such as Geller (1997), suggest that disciplinary action is rarely appropriate in safety situations. Geller makes the case that employees should be disciphned only if they intentionally break a safety rule. The problem with this recommendation is that the only way we can know if a worker intentionally did something unsafe is to ask Unfortunately, when faced with the prospect of significant disciplinary action for doing so, few workers are likely to admit they chose to commit an unsafe act. 

As to safety, all employees must know their company s rules of life and understand that breaking any of these rules will result in disciplinary action. These are the rules that the company will always enforce with disciplinary action when necessary. They are also the rules that are critical to protecting people s lives. The line must be clearly drawn in the sand, and when employees step over the line, the result needs to be disciplinary action. Both employees and supervisors need to clearly understand these requirements. Further, supervisors and managers should understand that they too are subject to disciplinary action if they fail to consistently enforce basic safety rules. 

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