Hi There I have just signed up to IOSH forums and looking for some ideas! I have been in the safety role now for approaching 2 years and was previously a Shift Manager. We had no H&S previously systems and had quite a lot of LTAs,RIDDORS etc etc... I have build a whole new H&S systems with the backing of our new Ops director and as of next Tuesday will be 1 year with no LTA which is a record for the site ( Site is 20 years old!) We are now embarking on a behavioural safety focus after having Ken Woodward come in and do sessions for all our staff which was very effective ! I have started a Behavioural audit system of commitee members and management doing behavioural audits and safety observation cards but does anyone have any other ideas? ( We are a biscuit factory) We are also going to reward all staff with a voucher next Tuesday when we reach 365 days! Thanks Tom

'Any good ideas'...don't advertise the amount of days without an LTI. Doomed for failure.

Hi Jodie I'm in the process of getting the committee more involved in H&S with audits, RA, Training at the moment

Celebrate your achievements when you have them and do not following them up with Negatives e.g. its a great result but we could do better. Yes there is a risk of under reporting as soon as some reward is implemented for having no accidents, LTIs etc with any reward make sure it is achievable by everyone who works at the site from the cleaner to the senior manager. Good behavior is all about supporting, about asking and not telling and a lot of this will come from Managers and Supervisors. Its about driving change through positive re-enforcement just simply going out of your way to say thank you to some for doing a good job or when someone isn't performing or had an accident, asking them how it could have been avoided or how things could be done differently rather than finger pointing. Tea and Toast morning are quite popular where by the senior managers / directors join the staff in the canteen once a month for a friendly chat. Its a long road and it will take a while before you see the change or culture affected but worth it in the long run and well done for going down this route.

I used to get members of the safety Committee to go to one another's areas and observe and take notes of both things badly done and well done. These were just observations and issues noted as seeming to be badly done were then discussed by the group to decide if it was and if so what could be done about it. We encouraged equal numbers of good and bad points to be observed to remove any malice. This worked well for us, as it was fresh eyes and not the eyes of the management / safety bod. They then started to walk around with their safety eyes on, all the time ! Chris

Thanks for advice guys Cheers

This has been said before that for some employers “behavioural safety initiatives” just boil down to blaming the employees for all the accidents. Managers are encouraged to go to town over minor issues which may or may not be the fault of employees (eg not wearing PPE) while ignoring big strategic cock ups. This seems to be common in the gas and oil industry and a lot of the recent disasters (Buncefield, Gulf of Mexico) involve companies that did just that focus on the petty stuff and miss out on the big stuff.

Tom As you asked whether anyone else has other ideas, I endorse Ray Rapp's implicit warning that you are very much in danger of mistaking the wood for the trees, and the trees for the ecosystem. As 'behavioural safety' has many elephant traps, it's a good idea to read and DIGEST, 'The New Psychology of Leadership' by Haslam, Reicher and Platow (Psychology Press, 2011) which explains how the social identity of people at work works - and doesn't work - with clarity and appropriate edge.

That's the way go Tom, most peoples happiness is through their stomachs! Just keep promoting the positives and have feedback sessions with the managers and get them to give examples of what they have been finding and their interacting with employees over the issues. You may need to give feedback to the Managers and guide them a little bit.

A very simple behavioural safety scheme I have used in the past is one that is based on employees conducting safety observations. Basically through discussion with employees you jointly agree what are the key safe behaviours in a particular area.All emloyees in that area, managers as well, take turns at observing whether a particular key safe behaviour is being complied with - yes or no. Over a period of time this allows you to build up a %ge compliance. All employees are encouraged to challenge non-compliance when they see it and re-inforce compliance when they see that through positive feedback. When the %ge compliance reaches a target level for a target period you move on to observing the next safe behaviour. The key to this is regular monitoring and feedback. All employees must take part, no exceptions and employees must be actively involved in identifying the key safe behaviours. You can get a lot more info an behavioural safety and safety culture by googling Dominic Cooper