Building a Safety Culture That Works: More Than Just Rules and Procedures
Construction safety culture can transform by prioritizing leadership, employee engagement and proactive measures beyond traditional rules and procedures.
- By Jared Anderson
- May 17, 2024
The construction industry thrives on a robust safety culture. Cultivating an effective safety environment goes beyond adhering to policies and procedures and pursuing incident-free days. While metrics and measures have their place, the genuine concern for the well-being of everyone on the worksite is the real driving force. It is about taking proactive steps to prevent incidents and prioritizing the safety of the individual and the organization.
The journey toward effective safety management begins with all employees, from the CEO to the superintendent, acknowledging their responsibility to each other and their loved ones for a safe work environment. Organizations must commit to fostering a safe environment for employees, subcontractors and the community, ensuring everyone returns home.
To bring about strategic changes in safety management, organizations must engage and educate leaders, identifying opportunities for improvement within the company.
Laying the Groundwork for Effective Safety Management
Investing in corporate leaders, field leaders and frontline workers forms the foundation of an effective safety culture. Successful organizations empower their leaders with the right resources, recognizing that strong leadership requires proper support in management, leadership and communication skills, especially in leading safety initiatives.
Effective safety management — and the systems supporting it — hinges on leadership involvement in building genuine and trusting relationships. An elevated level of engagement and commitment throughout the organization is vital for the success of a safety-centric culture. While developing skills and awareness is crucial, soft skills sustain a safe culture over time.
Field leadership programs not only enforce hard skills but also teach the soft skills, such as listening and leading, needed to empower individuals to be safety leaders in the field. This approach encourages leaders to pay attention to new employees, foster a supportive environment and instill a top-down commitment to safety through productivity, quality and project management.
Establishing strong relationships, starting from the onboarding process, is crucial. According to Tony Govind, director of human resources at Adolfson & Peterson Construction (AP), genuine conversations during the onboarding process — facilitated by the director of safety — build trust, common ground, and a heightened sense of care and concern for one another's safety.
This article originally appeared in the June 2024 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.