Motivation self-motivated workers

H. Ellem (Ref 6) remarks on the fact that self-interest is not a sufficient motivation for experienced workers to accept the requisite encum-berances of safety glasses, gloves and safety shields and that, therefore, no choioe must be given to the individual regarding this matter. Complete eye shields, while desirable, are often foregone in order to make the minimum protection of ordinary safety glasses enforceable... 

Elsewhere in the manuscript, and later in Capital /, he simplifies the exposition by assuming that "the worker lives off the use-value that he himself produces", but the above passage shows that he was fully aware of the distinction between the windfall profits that befall all capitalists as by-products of self-interested behaviour, and the immediate reward that is the motivation for the latter. This also applies to external economies in production ... 

Compliance of the safety process to laws, regulations, and company policies and procedures is measured effectively by audits. Self-audits can be effective, if done with objective honesty. More than 85 percent of employers in a recent Occupational Safety and Health Administration survey said they conduct voluntary self-audits of safety and health conditions in their workplaces (HE Solutions 1999, 12). With a 60% increase over an 18-year period in the number of organizations indicating they conduct audits, nearly 90 percent of the respondents indicated they had conducted an audit in the past 12 months (HE Solutions 1999,12). Reasons for conducting these audits include the need to reduce accidents, to do what is considered right for worker safety and health, and to ensure OSHA compliance. Additional motivators for organizations to conduct audits include decreases in injury rates, improvement in insurance rates, and mitigating fines from OSHA violations. 

Supervisors are role models. If they do not want to follow the rules or want to take special privileges, then they should not be supervisors. Being a supervisor requires some self-sacrifice. What the supervisors give is what they get. If supervisors want workers motivated to work in a safe and healthy manner, then they must also be motivated to act in a safe and healthy manner before them. 

The goal is to have effectively trained workers who are motivated to self-regulate themselves and take personal responsibility to work safely using the safest practices where these have become an integrated part of the workers value system and company culture. 

People have many abilities and talents that they are unaware of or just do not use. As a motivator, the supervisor is responsible for bringing out those hidden abilities and talents and channeling them toward the goals, outcomes, behaviors, and objectives desired. If this is done ethically, responsibly, and honestly, as discussed in previous sections, it will give workers a new sense of enthusiasm and self-esteem. 

The prevention of occupational injuries and illnesses will definitely reduce the cost of workers compensation premiums. It does not matter whether the company pays into the state workers compensation system or is self-insured. What motivates most employers to reduce workplace injuries and illnesses is usually dollars. Some studies show that other benefits result from a decrease in the number of injuries and illnesses. For example, employers can expect to increase attendance, morale, and productivity. These are just a few of the side effects of reduced workers compensation costs. 

Human beings are motivated by positive and negative forces by rewards and punishments. When it comes to safety there is no compromise. Although employees still need to be motivated, the motivation for safe behavior ultimately needs to be self-generated, arising from the commitment of each employee to remain safe. This commitment extends to co-workers, families, and the community [3]. 

On the surface, it seems like this decision process should be easy to navigate. Some organizations try to find something cool or survey workers to ask what they prefer. Others take Maslow s hierarchy into account. Workers on the low end of Maslow s hierarchy will be much more interested in cash and the less personal side of the spectrum will be fine. Any money that could have been spent on personalization or customization should be put into raising the amount of the incentive. On the other hand, workers at the top of Maslow s hierarchy will be more influenced by self-actualization and will prefer the prominence of an award or newsletter article and only an unpractically large sum of money would be effective in motivating them. 

Workers like to be able to monitor their own progress toward a goal or expectation. If you have a chalkboard, workers themselves can mark the board each time that they or a fellow worker has gone without an injury for an agreed upon period. Even if somewhat inaccurate, workers need to sense that they are involved in the process of safety and health at their workplace. This can lead to more teamwork and more motivation in the workplace. Self-monitoring may not always be an option but do not overlook its effect when it can be used. 

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