Safety conduit

One of the most crucial relationships that enables a team to work together is the one between safety professionals and supervisors. Supervisors “know the personalities of their workers far better than the safety professional does, so without them, you’re doomed to failure – or at least doomed to less than optimal success.

As safety professionals attest, making headway on the shop floor requires having buy-in at the supervisor level.

However, although safety comes first for the safety department, supervisors may have production or quality concerns that take precedence. To develop an effective partnership, safety professionals should adopt strategies aimed at smoothing tension and creating a trusting relationship with supervisors.

Benefits of the partnership
A study published in the Journal of Construction Engineering and Management (Vol. 138, No. 2) from the University of Melbourne highlights the connection between supervisors and safety. Researchers surveyed workers at three construction firms to gauge their view of the safety actions of the organization, supervisors and co-workers. Results showed an inverse relationship between perceptions of supervisor safety expectations and rates of lost-time injuries and medical treatment, which suggests workers may behave safer when they perceive their supervisor as being committed to safety.

Researchers also found a strong relationship between supervisors’ safety views and those of top management. As the researchers explained, supervisors are a “conduit” through which the organization’s safety values reach workers.

On a practical level, safety professionals need supervisors as an ally because supervisors are closer to the worker – in terms of both proximity and relationship. The role of the safety professional is to advise supervisors, who have authority and influence over their direct reports. Safety professionals can observe and guide supervisors, but should be careful to not interfere or tell the worker what to do, he added.

Forming the relationship
To establish a relationship, safety professionals set aside time on a regular basis to leave their office and interact with supervisors. Hosting occasional meetings or sending out memos is not enough.

The biggest challenge to safety today is a guy or a gal in safety increasingly is forced to spend so much time at their computer or reading documents or taking continuing education. You still have to prioritize your time on the plant floor.

Safety professionals also should entrust supervisors with relevant safety duties. At a plant, the line supervisor observes a machine while it is running and identifies any hazards in need of correction. The safety professional re-evaluates the machine with the supervisor, but the supervisor already has had a chance to make changes, and the safety professional will run any additional fixes by the supervisor. Safety professionals should make the supervisor’s concerns a priority.

‘How can I make it palatable for you?’
Safety professionals and supervisors often have different perspectives. Supervisors have production demands to meet and may not see the value of a safety change that will disrupt work.

Safety and production always has a bit of tension when the production people think that I’m trying to slow them down. Whether it’s on purpose or accidentally, it doesn’t matter,” said Chris Campbell, environmental, health and safety manager at Mason, MI-based Dart Container Corp.

Stopping work
One of the most difficult situations is when the safety professional needs to stop a project. For example, a project that required surveying an area for vegetation and plants. The data point was filled with extremely thorny Russian olive plants. The client protocol required that SWCA take the reading at that point, but it was unsafe and offered some options: choose another spot free of the hazard, or reschedule and return with appropriate personal protective equipment. They ended up taking the latter option.

It is important to involve supervisors in safety efforts because supervisors know the work best and are more likely to comply when they feel personally invested. Safety professionals need to understand the actual tasks that the supervisor and crew are performing.

Delivery counts
Success with supervisors depends as much on the safety professional’s approach as the actual message. When approaching supervisors or workers about unsafe work practices, safety professionals should pull the person aside and say, “I’m uncomfortable with the way you’re doing it,” and propose a safer method. When injuries occur, organize a safety stand-down and distribute a document explaining what happened, where the system broke down and what will be done to prevent another incident.

Reference: S&H