Employee commitment safety performance

At point A, despite full management commitment to safety performance, with low employee commitment to safety, the number of accidents remains high employees only follow procedures laid out because they feel they have to. At the other extreme, point B, when employee commitment is high, the number of accidents reduces dramatically employees feel responsible for their own safety as well as that of their colleagues. Employee commitment to safety is an attitude of mind rather than a taught discipline, and can be enhanced by training and (less effectively) incentive schemes. 

Even though there appears to be no correlation between occupational safety and process safety performance (Elliott et al., 2008), process safety improvement efforts need to follow the same philosophical directions as the above example— collect the proper information and devise improvement plans. Capturing the commitment of employees and modifying culture can be difficult until employees actually see and understand the benefit from the efforts. 

Our people have demonstrated an unwavering dedication to environmental protection, employee wellness, workplace safety and community outreach. Johnson Johnson s commitment to leadership in environmental, health and safety performance will continue in the future. We encourage all employees to be involved and work together so Johnson Johnson continues to be a good neighbor and an exemplary corporate citizen. 

Having standards for each element of the safety system means that safety issues are documented and the requirements are clearly spelled out. Both managers and employees prefer safety directives and policies in writing so that expectations at all levels are clearly spelled out. Safety standards commit the organization and its members to carry out certain safety activities on a regular basis, and who must perform the activity and what the required result is are clearly laid out in the standard. Having committed the organization and its members to specific standards creates the foundation of the company s safety culture—its safety personality. 

A mission statement communicates the broad goals and the organization s commitment to safety, to employees, and to the public. A common theme found in safety policy statements is that of ongoing safety performance assessment and improvement. It is through the safety policy statement that an organization establishes the safety climate. 

The focus here is on improving safety-related conversations between people. Conversation, as discussed previously, is a powerful tool that shapes personal and team attitudes about loyalty, commitment, social support, and safety. Each of the techniques presented here can get employees more involved in safety, and improve the overall level of workplace safety performance. 

Metrics used to evaluate the safety performance of individuals, teams, and the organization as a whole have a powerful influence on context. Employee commitment, ownership, and involvement can increase or decrease depending on the evaluations employed. Injury statistics provide an overall estimate of the distance from a vision of "injury free," but they are not a diagnostic tool for proactive planning. If used as the only index of safety achievement (or failure), injury-related outcome numbers can do more harm than good, alienating people rather than empowering them to actively care for safety. 

Site-specific health and safety requirements and site personnel, including contractors, are typically held responsible for managing and conducting all activities safely. Every worker should understand that he or she is responsible for sharing in the commitment to a safe workplace. In addition, employees should perform their work in accordance with any applicable laws, regulations, contract provisions, and established site-specific requirements. 

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