This episode with Lori Frederic gets into workplace fitness, injury prevention, and the importance of understanding the 'why' behind movement and exercise. It explores the challenges of construction work in mission-critical projects, the transition to dynamic warm-ups, and the old vs. new approach to injury prevention and fitness. Also, we discuss the impact of attitude and trends in health and fitness, as well as advances in understanding human anatomy and the attitude towards health and fitness.

Chapters

• 00:00 Introduction and Swag Competition
• 07:30 Transition to Dynamic Warm-ups and Functional Fitness
• 17:30 The Impact of Attitude and Trends in Health and Fitness
• 25:12 Advances in Understanding Human Anatomy and Attitude Towards Health and Fitness

Summary
This episode with Blaine Hoffmann and Alex Paradies, from TapRoot gets into the value of metrics, the purpose of measuring, and the importance of understanding what to measure and what control we have over the results. They also talk about the challenges and limitations of leading and lagging indicators, the impact of gamifying measures, and the design fallacy in workplace metrics.

Chapters
* 00:00 The Value of Metrics
* 07:37 Challenges of Leading and Lagging Indicators
* 32:50 Proactive Measures vs. Leading Indicators
* 46:26 Leadership and Accountability in Metric Adoption
* 53:51 Cultural Shift for Successful Metric Implementation

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In this episode, Blaine J. Hoffmann, MS OSHM talks with attorney, Phillip Russell about the recent Supreme Court ruling on the Chevron Deference and what it might mean for the OSHA rule making process.

Check it out and join the conversation by becoming a SafetyPro Community member (it's FREE to join).

Premium Community members can access exclusive content like episode videos, video courses, templates/downloads, participate in live streams, and direct message/live chat with the Safety Pro. 

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Mentioned in this episode:

www.whosonlocation.com

www.mightylinetape.com/podcast

http://bit.ly/KPIWhitePaper

How do you measure safety in your workplace to enhance performance and reduce employee downtime? There are several tested methods that Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) leaders use to reduce employee incidents and illnesses. Among the leading methods, which the Gensuite white paper discusses, are Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)–or leading and lagging indicators.

Leading indicators are pre-incident measurements, as opposed to lagging indicators, which are measurements collected after an incident occurs. For example, a slip and fall incident from stray construction materials is a lagging indicator because the incident has already occurred, but an inspection that notes the poor quality of the surrounding area and prevents a future slip and fall from taking place is a leading indicator. A key component of leading indicators is that they measure safety events or behaviors that precede incidents and have a predictive quality.

By measuring leading indicators including conditions, events and sequences that precede and lead up to accidents, these KPIs have value in predicting the arrival of an event and can provide the opportunity to introduce control measures to stop the event from happening.

Recently, many articles have stressed the importance of looking beyond lagging indicators, but then how can your organization learn from past incidents and track results? By combining incident measurement and training management software, your company or organization can adopt a holistic approach to reducing workplace incidents and meeting Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.

Both leading and lagging indicators can be relevant to workplace safety and worth measuring. They present important aspects of an overall safety management system. We have to use all the tools available to us to create an environment that drives us to a zero-incident job site.

Selecting and Using the Right Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for Your Organization

Attempting to track complex data analytics and results, train employees and keep your team safe on your own can be dicult tasks to handle. Leading and lagging indicators can help reduce and prevent incidents. One way EHS leaders begin using KPIs is by selecting the appropriate sets for their organization.

Lagging Indicators

• OSHA recordable injuries
• OSHA citations
• OSHA recordable-case rate
• DART-case rate
• Fatality rate
• Worker compensation claims
• Experience modification rate

Leading Indicators

• Near misses (Note: this is still responding to something that already happened, just no consequences; might consider this lagging)
• Behavioral observations
• Training records
• Department safety meetings
• Employee-perception surveys
• Trainee scores on post-training quizzes
• Preventive-maintenance programs

When trying to pinpoint the indicator type essential for your organization–understand that both are essential. Leading indicators are like a car windshield, and lagging indicators are like the rearview mirror. You'll certainly spend more time looking out the windshield to see what's coming–with leading indicators–than looking in your rearview mirror to see where you've been–with lagging indicators.

Look at your company and see how you can start moving forward–toward a culture of safety–rather than looking behind. Within the leading and lagging indicator types, there are eight important characteristics that KPIs should have. Ensure that you follow this guideline when selecting the ones important for your workplace.

1. Actionable–metrics that have measurable steps

2. Achievable–setting goals that are obtainable

3. Meaningful–obtaining information for continued tracking

4. Transparent–metrics that are clearly understandable

5. Easy–to communicate effectively

6. Valid–relevant to the organization's objectives

7. Useful–metrics that are beneficial to the organization's safety goals

8. Timely–distributing information that is still relevant to the organization

Once you select your set of indicators and follow the necessary characteristics, it's important to track how well they are working and be flexible if the set needs to be revised for consistent improvement.

Why Leading and Lagging Indicators Are Important: Rising OSHA Regulations & Safety Trends

Each year brings about new regulations and carries over existing regulations that companies must abide by. Thus, it's important to stay on top of ever-evolving regulatory trends so you don't risk non-compliance. Use the leading and lagging indicator system to help with the following key OSHA regulations and safety trends.

Overview of the Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica Rule

OSHA's final rule aims to reduce the risk of lung cancer, silicosis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease in America's workers by limiting their exposure to respirable crystalline silica. The rule is comprised of two standards, one for Construction and one for General Industry and Maritime. Responsible employers have been protecting employees from the harmful substance for years, but now it's becoming mandatory. Here are some of the rule requirements:

• Reduces the permissible exposure limit for silica to 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air
• Requires employers to: use engineering controls to limit worker exposure; provide respirators when engineering controls cannot adequately limit exposure; develop a written exposure control plan, and train workers on silica risks and how to limit exposures
• Provides medical exams to monitor highly exposed workers and gives them information about their lung health

Overview of OSHA Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses Rule

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports more than three million workers suffer from a workplace injury or illness every year. Currently, little or no information about worker injuries and illnesses is made public or available to OSHA. With this new rule, employers are required to submit a record of the injuries and illnesses to OSHA to help them with identifying hazards and fixing problems.

Here are the rule requirements:

1. Establishments with 250 or more employees must *electronically submit injury and illness information from OSHA forms 300, 300A and 301 (300 & 301 starting in 2018)
2. Establishments with 20-249 employees in high-risk industries must submit information from OSHA form 300A

Trend #1: Dealing with Workplace Stress

The National Institute of Occupational Safety And Health emphasizes that work-related stress disorders are expected to rise as the economy continues to undergo various shifts and impacts.

Therefore, companies should take steps to ensure that any current programs are robust enough to reduce the concerns associated with stress in the workplace, as well as implement any new programs that show an increased effectiveness at reducing the generation of stress.

Trend #2: Leveraging Risk Management

2017 saw a continued trend in developing internal risk management programs and systems, and 2018 into 2019 looks to be the year where many of these programs are leveraged for results across the company spectrum. In other words, sucient time has occurred for the internal development of risk management data and effectiveness that this can now be translated directly into specific areas of the business to further reduce inherent risk development within the company.

Trend #3: Increased Reliance on Predictive Analytics

A new trend becoming prominent in 2018 is an increased reliance on predictive analytics. Many companies have been developing risk management and mitigation data and using analytics to help derive sense from this mountain of information. 2019 looks to be the year where many of these are put into practice company-wide. In addition, the trend of emphasizing the use of these predictive analytics is expected to rise as much of this information is refined even further.

This should begin to show positive returns for companies that have been implementing this predictive technology as part of a risk management profile. However, there is still time to take advantage of these systems for those companies that have not implemented these types of analytics.

Trend #4: More Regulatory Changes

There are few that doubt that more regulatory and legislative changes are expected in 2018.

While many differences continue to grow between national policy and those enacted on the state and local level, few can predict what the specific changes will actually be. However, what is an almost certainty is that for companies, flexibility will be necessary in order to adapt to the new policies to come.

Models and Methods for Using Leading and Lagging Indicators: A Contextual and Visual Guide

Various proven, yet antiquated and manual, methods have been used for measuring KPIs, such as those discussed in the report, A Method for Modeling of KPIs Enabling Validation of Their Properties. The authors cover two techniques workplaces use to track KPIs.

The first model integrates the following attributes for tracking performance: indicator name, type, scale, source, owner and threshold. Though, it is not easy to find all of this information so EHS experts often rely on documentation, expert knowledge and previous conceptual models.

The second model used for KPI formalization is known as performance indicator expression. It is "a mathematical statement over a performance indicator evaluated to a numerical, qualitative".

In other words, a given value for a time point, for the organization, unit or agent. The authors suggest specifying the required values of performance indicators as constraints coming from goals. The relations between performance indicators are modeled using predicates.

The third model used by EHS professionals and safety teams is known as the Heinrich Pyramid–a traditional way of tracking occupational illnesses and injuries.

The Heinrich Pyramid (also known as the Safety Triangle) quantifies the number of reported workplace incidents into four main categories: major injuries, severe accidents, first aid cases and near misses. Employee concern reports, safety observations and at-risk observations can also be added to the base of the triangle to incorporate leading indicators into the analysis.

This is a 1-10-30-600 model. For every 1 incident reported in the major injury category, severe accidents are 10 times as likely to happen. Also, for every 1 major injury, approximately 30 first aid cases, and 600 near misses.

When companies plug their own incidents into this model or pyramid, they can see if they have the corresponding model ratio, as described above, and if they have a significant amount of major and severe incidents. The premise for this model is that the more companies focus on reducing the numbers at the bottom of the pyramid, the more likely they are to reduce major safety incidents at the top.

The pyramid is inclusive of many types of injuries and incidents, but it doesn't assist EHS professionals with narrowing down the data to the critical cases/accidents, root causes and solutions. For example, a site could have a series of cases that stem from ergonomic-related issues and spend significant amounts of time on root cause and trend analysis instead of the cases/accident that have a high potential to result in an employee fatality or significant property damage.

Critics of the Heinrich Pyramid also claim that "adhering to it can lead to an over-emphasis on worker behavior and not enough attention on health and safety management software systems." No matter the flaws, there is always a solution to the system.

These methods are used to benefit companies' safety success rates and business performance objectives. The methods can be adapted to any enterprise modeling approach. Companies can apply these measures of thinking into a conventional and modernized process by integrating EHS management software into their workplace as discovered in the following section.

A Gensuite Solution: Implementing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) Into Your Workplace

To simplify and digitize the three models and methods discussed above, companies turn to compliance and management software systems such as Gensuite. Such systems enhance workplace safety performance by simplifying the tracking of leading and lagging indicators.

Utilize Gensuite EHS software tailored to measure KPIs and manage training compliance. Just a few of Gensuite's specialized features of these tools include:

• Framework for managing regulatory and program-specific training requirements.
• Validate training effectiveness through course-specific e-quizzes
• Incident investigation, root cause analysis, corrective and preventive action tracking
• Integrate with occupational health, medical and computer systems for case tracking and program visibility

What makes this important right now? Why should your business invest? Other than avoiding everyday safety violations and reoccurring workplace injuries, investing will help you meet current and upcoming OSHA regulations. Here's a look at customizable Gensuite applications.

Incidents & Measurements

The Gensuite Incidents & Measurements application can help you address the new regulation by enabling one-click generation of a site/business OSHA 300, 300A, and 301 forms. In addition, Gensuite joins ongoing discussions with subscribers and industry groups to meet with OSHA to talk through options for direct system integrations, thus removing the need for sites to manually generate logs and input them into OSHA's website.

Other benefits of the Gensuite Incidents & Measurements application:

• Tracking of hours worked and sites recordable rates
• Monitoring site performance on a monthly/quarterly basis through auto-generated site metric reports
• Instant system-generated email notifications upon entry/modification of incidents so site-leadership stays up-to-date

Training Compliance

The Gensuite Training Compliance suite can help you address both new OSHA regulations by keeping your employees up-to-date with OSHA's mandatory training requirements. In addition, training employees prevent new and future injuries from occurring, so you don't have to evaluate progress based on how many employees have been severely injured and how that number has improved. Prevent them from happening in the first place.

Other benefits of the Gensuite Training Compliance application:

• Establish a framework for managing regulatory and program-specific training requirements,
• Alert training leaders of new and transferred employees for training needs assessment
• Integrate automatic updates from HR systems, offer multiple training instruction types to
• Engage employees in classroom and e-learning training; integrated training calendar solution
• for session scheduling, provide employees with access to a diverse library of pre-loaded
• Training content licensed from leading providers such as RedVector®, SkillSoft®, PureSafety®
• Validate training effectiveness through course-specific e-quizzes; log completions through
• Online, bar-coding, Mobile & batch upload
• Identify qualified employees by task based on training completion status

Look to Key Performance Indicators so your business can avoid safety violations and injuries.

Let me know what you think; send emails to info@thesafetypropodcast.com

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COVID-19 Resources for Businesses and Employers from the CDC

Let me know what you are doing to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 at work on LinkedIn - be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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ANNOUNCEMENT: Visit VPPPA to register for the National Symposium and join me as I podcast on location! Listen to this episode for some details.

Let me know what you think. Send an email to info@thesafetypropodcast.com and share with me your thoughts about VPP or the VPPPA.

Please tell a friend or colleague about the podcast. It would mean the WORLD to me!

You can also find me on LinkedIn! Post a LinkedIn update letting me know what you think of the podcast. Be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!

• How you can spot complacency in your organization
• 5 proven and proactive ways to combat complacency
• Real-life examples of how you can reduce this mindset
• Best practices in reinforcing behaviors that reduce complacency

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Final vacation week! Thanks for being loyal listeners. I wanted to remind everyone in this quick episode about taking safety with when you leave work.

I may put together an episode about this topic soon. Share your off-the-job safety tips by sending me an email to info@thesafetypropodcast.com.

You can find me on LinkedIn! Post a LinkedIn update letting me know what you think of the podcast. Be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter 

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Jason Maldonado joins me to discuss why as Safety Pros we need to improve our writing skills! Check out Jason's website to get access to his own writing course and get started improving your writing skills today!

Please listen and share this episode with others. If you want to go more in-depth on this and other topics - become a SafetyPro Community member (FREE to join).

To get access to premium content like bonus materials, downloads, live chats with the Safety Pro (coming soon) - become a PREMIUM member!

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In this episode, I share some great resources for businesses considering reopening during the current COVID-19 Pandemic from our friends at Mighty Line Tape.

Mighty Line even got a shout-out from Mr. Wonderful himself, check it out here.

The plan to reopen must be carefully considered and planned in order to protect workers and their families. Listen to this episode for some great tips and links to resources you will need to reopen safely.

Join the discussion on LinkedIn. Just be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

NOTICE: Published April 22, 2020 - The information in this post/episode is subject to change.

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The new CDC face-covering recommendations do not change the MASK guidance. So what is new? What is the same? Let's talk about that in this episode.

Essentially, the CDC recommends anyone going out in public wear a face-covering. These can be homemade cloth-type coverings. What is the intended purpose? Will they offer you protection? What protection do they offer others? 

Also, I decided to add a healthy dose of "rant" for safety professionals that are commenting on others' LinkedIn posts celebrating efforts to stay safe during the COVID-19 Pandemic. In short; stop looking for problems!

Curious? Listen to the whole episode to get my thoughts. What do you think? Masks or no masks? I will post an update on this topic as well as take all of your comments to heart! Join the discussion on LinkedIn. Just be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Welcome to the first in a series of introductory episodes about safety and health management. I wanted to release a series of episodes that break down important aspects of safety and health before I dive into specific things you need to do in order to manage safety in your business.

The overall safety and health management system, or safety program, refers to everything you are doing within the company to manage safety. This includes training, audits, written programs, surveys, etc. This episode, we will focus primarily on the part of the written manual of that system.

Now, most companies have specific things in mind when looking at safety and its benefits, such as reducing the costs of downtime, and workers' compensation premiums, etc. Because the underlying cause of accidents is directly related to the safety program (or lack of a safety program), then having effective safety and health management systems and processes is critical. Yet, many companies do not have these systems or processes or have comprehensive manuals describing each of their safety programs.

Written safety manuals are only an indication of top management support for safety and health. In order to ensure everyone understands their role, what is expected of them and what to expect regarding safety, the company needs to develop a comprehensive safety program with written safety manuals for each topic covered. Having a formal written program helps you to define and direct the safety effort; ensure that the programs cover all major safety issues on a topic-by-topic basis, organizing the safety information in an accessible and logical order.

Developing a written safety program (which includes manuals and procedures) can take time and a considerable amount of money, but in return, it provides a company and its employees with:

• Communication of known safety hazards associated with tasks, equipment, processes, facilities, etc.
• Well-established goals and objectives
• A Mission statement & written commitment to safety
• Written standards and expectations of management & employees
• Clear boundaries, and disciplinary actions for failure to follow safety guidelines
• Defined safety roles and responsibilities for managers, supervisors, and employees
• Establishment of a safety budget

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In this episode, Blaine Hoffmann, MS OSHM, talks with Alexander Paradies from TapRooT® about the history of root cause analysis (RCA). There certainly have been some interesting evolutions over the years.

Please listen to this episode and share it with others. If you want to discuss this and other topics in depth, become a SafetyPro Community member (it's FREE to join).

Premium Community members can access exclusive content like episode videos, video courses, templates/downloads, participate in live streams, and direct message/live chat with the Safety Pro. 

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Visit Mighty Line Tape for all of your facility marking needs. Order your free sample of floor tape TODAY!

Visit Arrow Safety for all of your safety service needs. Remember to mention we sent you to get 25% off your estimate!

Join the Community of Safety Pros today!

Join the Community of Safety Pros today!

In this episode, we talk with Alexander Paradies from TapRooT® about things that can cloud our ability to see real problems in our processes and even comprehend "risky" situations and project what might happen.

Please listen and share this episode with others. If you want to go more in-depth on this and other topics - become a SafetyPro Community member (FREE to join).

Premium Community members can access exclusive content like episode videos, video courses, templates/downloads, participate in live streams, and direct message/live chat with the Safety Pro. 

Join the Community of Safety Pros today!

Visit Mighty Line Tape for all of your facility marking needs. Order your free sample of floor tape TODAY!

Visit Arrow Safety for all of your safety service needs. Remember to mention we sent you to get 25% off your estimate!

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In this episode, I will talk about preparing for an OSHA inspection and how to best handle the event should one occur. Here, my focus will be what to do up-front, and should a compliance safety and health officer (CSHO) arrive at your facility, what to expect and what you should have ready to make it go smoother.

I will also talk briefly about how to handle any alleged violation and potential citations that come your way.

Let's first get some definitions out of the way:

I already mentioned the CSHO (Compliance Safety and Health Officer): This is the federal OSHA employee who conducts inspections for the agency — a.k.a. "OSHA Inspector."

General Duty Clause (GDC): A section of the OSH Act — Section 5(a)(1) — that requires employers to protect employees from recognized, serious hazards, regardless of whether there is a specific standard addressing that hazard. OSHA often uses the GDC to cite employers for not protecting workers from ergonomic-type risks, workplace violence, and heat stress.

OSHA: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration — the federal agency that sets and enforces worker safety and health laws.

OSH Act: The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, which is the enabling legislation for OSHA. 

Repeat violation: A hazardous/violative condition that is the same or similar to a previously cited condition in the past five years at either the same establishment or another establishment of the same company under federal OSHA jurisdiction.

Serious violation: A violation where there is a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result, and the employer knew or should have known of the hazard.

Willful violation: A violation that the employer intentionally and knowingly commits.
Now let's get into the arrival and inspection process and how to best handle these and ultimately what you can do to prepare your company better.

Understand that OSHA has the right to inspect places of work. A question I get more often than I am comfortable with is whether or not you can require OSHA to come back with a warrant. Yes, employers may exercise their Constitutional rights to request a warrant; however, there is a relatively low threshold for OSHA to obtain such approval - so this is not advised in many cases and will not show your willingness to cooperate. Instead, use your right to an opening conference upon their arrival.

Pro Tip: When the compliance officer arrives, avoid showing a negative attitude. Creating a wrong first impression could set up your facility for failure, so practice having a positive attitude towards the compliance officer. Being polite can put the inspector at ease and create a positive environment—you might even enjoy the inspection.

Know the reasons that prompt most inspections. Inspections can be triggered in a variety of ways, such as reports of serious injuries, complaints, targeting/emphasis programs, and plain-view hazards. They are seldom at random.

Note that some smaller workplaces in low-hazard industries may be exempt from certain types of inspections. See CPL 02-00-051-Enforcement exemptions and limitations under the Appropriations Act.

Know the phases of an OSHA inspection. Inspections will consist of an opening conference, records review, walkthrough inspection, and closing conference. Citations will not be issued during the inspection; those come later from the Area Office director.

Verify CSHO's credentials. Always ask to see the CSHO credentials upon arrival. You can also contact the area office to verify their identity if needed.

Get a clear understanding of the proposed scope of an inspection. CSHO's should generally stick to that scope. This means, what do they want to see? A specific process, part of the facility, program review, etc. Which tells you exactly how to narrow the visit - where to take them and where NOT to take them!

Have documents ready. The OSHA Compliance Officer will look for documentation including but not limited to injury and illness records, written safety plans, past inspections, training, exposures, and other safety-related documents. You should maintain, review, and keep documents in a place where you or an assigned supervisor can easily find and present them to the officer. Remember that OSHA could show up at any time. They'll usually arrive during business hours, but an inspection prompted by a severe workplace injury during third shift could mean a knock at the door in the middle of the night.

Pro Tip: A note about self-audits or inspections; OSHA has never officially stated that they will not use self-audits. However, in a final policy published in the Federal Register (65:46498-46503), OSHA noted that the Agency will not "routinely" request to see self-audit reports at the initiation of an inspection, and the Agency will not use self-audit reports as a means of identifying hazards upon which to focus during an inspection.

OSHA has also stated that where a voluntary self-audit identifies a hazardous condition, and the employer has corrected the condition prior to the inspection and taken appropriate steps to prevent recurrence, the Agency will refrain from issuing a citation, even if the violative condition existed within the six months limitations period during which OSHA is authorized to issue citations.

Keep in mind, OSHA has the right to take photographs during inspections. It is a good idea for employers to duplicate this effort. Employers must also remember that OSHA does have the right to photograph in confidential areas; in instances where there are trade secrets, OSHA has special privacy procedures to follow concerning maintaining the case file documentation.

As for videos, the same rules apply here as well. I remember during one fatality I was investigating; the CHSO informed me of his intent to videotape and he showed me the camera, how he would turn it on, the light indicating it was on, etc. He even told me that he would NOT record me or ask me any questions during the recording. It was merely to capture the worksite and equipment that was involved in the fatality. He made it a point to ensure I was comfortable - he even dispelled the myth that CHSOs would pretend they turned the camera off but kept secretly recording to gain evidence. That is NOT how they operate. I was there alone without an attorney, walking through a site where a 20-year employee of the company was killed - a sensitive and emotional time. CHSOs are highly trained, and more importantly, they are also human; they have empathy like anyone else. I was so impressed by the CHSO I have stayed in touch with him since then, and we have collaborated on Q&A from time to time.

Always correct hazards. Although you might not undergo an inspection, correcting daily hazards can prepare you for an unexpected visit. I have said it for years, your number one strategy for dealing with an OSHA inspection is three words: BE. IN. COMPLIANCE.

You'll have less reason to fear an OSHA inspection if you conduct self-inspections, looking for missing machine guards, blocked fire exits, unkept working areas, and fall hazards. Preparing your workplace for a compliance officer will depend on your ability to identify and correct known hazards consistently.

For each alleged violation found during the inspection, the compliance officer has discussed or will discuss the following with you: 

• Nature of the violation
• Possible abatement measures you may take to correct the violative condition
• ƒPossible abatement dates you may be required to meet 
• ƒAny penalties that the area director may issue

Do not interfere with employee interviews. Under the OSH Act, OSHA has the right to question employees privately. Supervisors, however, do have the right to legal counsel. Be careful that you do not appear to be coaching or intimidating the CHSO.

I always held a brief meeting with all employees with the CHSO present to introduce them and explain that the only expectation the company has is that the employees, should they be interviewed, are to be cooperative and professional and that their conversation is kept private and confidential. 

OSHA has six months from learning of a hazard to issue citations. Only the Area Director can issue citations. Once you get it, it will be certified mail, and the clock starts ticking at that point. I will explain it.

Post OSHA citations for three days or until the violation is corrected, whichever is longer. The citation must remain posted in a place where employees can see it, for three working days or until the violation is corrected, whichever is longer. (Saturdays, Sundays, and Federal holidays are not counted as working days.)

Pro Tip: Post it as close to the violation location as possible - in some cases, a public location will be acceptable. Like a bulletin board or inside a job trailer.

Exercise your right to an informal conference to discuss proposed citations. Employers may also contest citations before an independent review commission. Which has to be requested ASAP! I always tell employers, even if you are going to agree with the citations, always ask for the informal conference.

It is an excellent opportunity to show to OSHA that you are committed to improving workplace safety and can even negotiate an informal settlement agreement - which will always have some training requirements attached, so be prepared to invest in time and resources and not just expect to smile and get a good neighbor discount.

Pro Tip: The Area Director is authorized to reduce proposed penalties by up to 50% with an informal settlement agreement. I have negotiated many of these and even had some proposed citations vacated during these conferences after bringing evidence and arguing an interpretation of the standard - risky but we were right so it made sense to do it at the time.

Remember there are only 15-working days to file a proper notice of contest. This must be in writing. Which is why it is critical to get the informal conference going right away!

Do not retaliate against any worker for exercising their rights under the law. This is key - and if employee violations of company rules are at play, always ask OSHA about the retaliation rules if in doubt. But this may be needed as a result of any investigations.  

A pro Tip: Simulate inspections…

The best way to train is to simulate an inspection. Before an OSHA Compliance Officer visit, practice the procedures that will be taken when the officer arrives. Insurance underwriters can offer some assistance here - think about it, they will often inspect workplaces as a part of their coverage policy, so why not communicate to staff/employees that this is also a mock audit?

Ask the insurance rep for their agenda and add some activities that the CHSO may conduct. This might include, but not be limited to:

• Instructing your front office personnel to practice greeting a
• compliance officer in a polite manner.
• Training staff to answer questions concisely.
• Conducting mock interviews with employees.
• Practicing what you'll discuss during the opening and closing conferences.

Chances are, an inspection will go smoothly if you prepare your facility by having documents ready, correcting hazards before the visit, and simulating the inspection. 

Taking these precautions won't eliminate the possibility of a citation, but the compliance officer might view your effort as "good faith," making it easier to manage any hiccups during the inspection, so put your fears to rest and prepare, prepare, prepare!

Be sure to send emails to info@thesafetypropodcast.com

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In almost all industries, we may work with or around machinery. Moving machine parts have the potential to cause severe workplace injuries, such as crushed fingers or hands, amputations, burns, or blindness. Safeguards are essential for protecting workers from these preventable injuries. Any machine part, function, or process that may cause injury must be safeguarded. When the operation of a machine or accidental contact could injure the operator or others in the vicinity, the hazards must be eliminated or controlled.

OSHA's machine guarding standards apply to employers having employees exposed to dangerous moving parts.

29 CFR 1910.212 — General requirements for all machinery. This is OSHA's general requirement for all machinery. It is a catch-all standard (like the General Duty Clause) requiring employers to protect employees from dangerous moving parts and to guard points of operation. OSHA also has some machine-specific standards, which you may need to know: 

29 CFR 1910.213 — Woodworking machinery

29 CFR 1910.215 — Abrasive wheel machinery

29 CFR 1910.216 — Mills and calendars in the rubber and plastics industries

29 CFR 1910.217 — Mechanical power presses

29 CFR 1910.218 — Forging machinery

29 CFR 1910.219 — Mechanical power transmission apparatus

• Fixed guard: A fixed guard is a permanent part of the machine. It is not dependent upon moving parts to function. It may be constructed of sheet metal, screen, wire cloth, bars, plastic, or any other material that is substantial enough to withstand whatever impact it may receive and to endure prolonged use. This guard is usually preferable to all other types because of its relative simplicity.
• Interlock: When this type of guard is opened or removed, the tripping mechanism and/or power automatically shuts off or disengages, the moving parts of the machine are stopped, and the machine cannot cycle or be started until the guard is back in place. An interlocked guard may use electrical. mechanical, hydraulic, or pneumatic power or any combination of these. Interlocks should not prevent "inching" by remote control if required. Replacing the guard should not automatically restart the machine. To be effective, all removable guards should be interlocked to prevent occupational hazards.
• Photoelectric (light) device: The photoelectric (optical) presence-sensing device uses a system of light sources and controls which can interrupt the machine's operating cycle. If the light field is broken, the machine stops and will not cycle. This device must be used only on machines which can be stopped before the worker can reach the danger area. The design and placement of the guard depend upon the time it takes to stop the machine and the speed at which the employee's hand can reach across the distance from the guard to the danger zone.
• Point of operation: The point of equipment at which work, such as cutting, boring, or bending, is performed. With a few exceptions, the point of operation must be guarded.
• Power transmission apparatus/device: The power transmission apparatus is all components of the mechanical system which transmit energy to the part of the machine performing the work. These components include flywheels, pulleys, belts, connecting rods, couplings, cams, spindles, chains, cranks, and gears.
• Pullback: Pullback devices utilize a series of cables attached to the operator's hands, wrists, and/or arms. This type of device is primarily used on machines with stroking action. When the slide/ram is up between cycles, the operator is allowed access to the point of operation. When the slide/ram begins to cycle by starting its descent, a mechanical linkage automatically assures withdrawal of the hands from the point of operation.
• Restraint: The restraint (hold-back) device utilizes cables or straps that are attached to the operator's hands and a fixed point. The cables or straps must be adjusted to let the operator's hands travel within a predetermined safe area. There is no extending or retracting action involved. Consequently, hand-feeding tools are often necessary if the operation involves placing material into the danger area.
• Self-adjusting guard: The openings of these barriers are determined by the movement of the stock. As the operator moves the stock into the danger area, the guard is pushed away, providing an opening which is only large enough to admit the stock. After the stock is removed, the guard returns to the rest position. This guard protects the operator by placing a barrier between the danger area and the operator. The guards may be constructed of plastic, metal, or other substantial material. Self-adjusting guards offer different degrees of protection.
• Two-hand control: The two-hand control requires constant, concurrent pressure by the operator to activate the machine. This kind of control requires a part-revolution clutch, brake, and a brake monitor if used on a power press. With this type of device, the operator's hands are required to be at a safe location (on control buttons) and at a safe distance from the danger area while the machine completes its closing cycle.
• Two-hand trip: The two-hand trip requires the concurrent application of both the operator's control buttons to activate the machine cycle, after which the hands are free. This device is usually used with machines equipped with full-revolution clutches. The trips must be placed far enough from the point of operation to make it impossible for the operator to move his or her hands from the trip buttons or handles into the point of operation before the first half of the cycle is completed. The distance from the trip button depends upon the speed of the cycle and the band speed constant. Thus the operator's hands are kept far enough away to prevent them from being placed in the danger area prior to the slide/ram or blade reaching the full "down" position. To be effective, both two-hand controls and trips must be located so that the operator cannot use two hands or one hand and another part of his/her body to trip the machine.

In general, you can use the following 5 steps to ensure safe machine operation in your workplace:

1. Determine the types of machinery in the workplace. Then, determine if there is a machine-specific standard (e.g., 1910.213-.219), or if the equipment is covered under the "catch-all" guarding requirement of 1910.212. Follow the applicable standard.
2. Provide one or more methods of machine guarding to protect the operator and other employees in the machine area from hazards such as those created by point of operation, ingoing nip points, rotating parts, flying chips, and sparks. Note: Some of the machine-specific standards prescribe specific safeguarding measures.
3. Ensure the point of operation of machines is guarded.
4. Ensure the necessary guards are affixed and secured.
5. Anchor machines designed for a fixed location to prevent walking or moving.

These basic steps will cover almost all of your machine guarding needs. Let me know what you think, send emails to info@thesafetypropodcast.com.

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According to ISO, the purpose of a safety management system is to provide a framework for managing safety and health risks and opportunities. Of course, this means preventing workplace accidents, injuries, and illnesses by recognizing and eliminating or managing risks by taking preventative and protective measures.

The structure of ISO 45001 will tell you everything you need to know about how effective safety management systems are set up. Let's take a look at this SMS at a high-level then get into each element.

There are ten areas of focus found in ISO 45001:

1. Scope
2. References
3. Definitions
4. Context of the Organization
5. Leadership and Worker Participation
6. Planning
7. Support
8. Operation
9. Performance Evaluation
10. Improvement

I will not get into all of these in great detail but will touch on most to get an understanding of what is needed when considering ISO 45001 for your organization. Let's just skip to number four since I think you get the scope of why ISO 45001 was created if you listened to the past several episodes.

Context of the organization

You first need to understand your organization, it's context, needs, and expectations of the workers. One must also understand what ISO calls "other interested parties," like vendors, suppliers, contractors, and even customers.

The scope is everything around why the company is in business and how the company makes or provides the products or services it offers. In the case of manufacturing, what machines and processes are involved? What chemicals, tools, materials are needed? What trades or special skills are required of workers? What planned or performed work-related activities will be required? The same goes for construction, mining, hospitality, retail, or food industries.

Some expectations you will need to identify are going to be legal ones - compliance with laws and regulations. Other expectations will be industry or corporate-driven, such as the case with best practices or compliance with voluntary guidelines, like ISO or ANSI or VPP.

All of this will help you determine the scope of the safety management system. So you have to establish, implement, maintain, and continually improve a safety management system. This includes the processes needed and their interactions - and ISO lays those out in 45001.

Leadership and Worker Participation

This section addresses two of the foundational elements of any safety management system; the leaders and the workers. This relationship is absolutely critical to the success of everything the business does, including safety and health. As for leadership, they need to be committed to the safety management system. Here are some things required to achieve this:

• Leadership must accept overall accountability for the prevention of workplace injuries and illnesses, as well as establishing a safe work environment and work-related activities.
• They must ensure that the overall safety and health policy and related goals and objectives are established and compatible with the strategic direction of the company.
• Leadership must also make sure to integrate the safety management system elements into the rest of the business processes.
• Leaders must make sure that adequate resources needed to establish, implement, and maintain the safety management system are provided at all times. This includes qualified personnel to contribute to SMS effectiveness.
• Top leadership must also communicate the importance of effective safety management and compliance with all of the requirements the company has set forth.
• Ensure the SMS achieves desired outcomes by promoting a continuous process improvement approach.
• Supporting other management roles so that they may also ensure SMS success.
• Develop and lead a culture that supports the intended outcomes of the SMS. This means protecting workers from retaliation when reporting hazards, concerns, suggestions, or even just participating in workplace safety activities. Also, by making sure workers are included in the decision-making process when it comes to safety and health. One way to do this is to establish a safety and health committee. NOTE: ISO 45001 does require a committee.

Safety and Health Policy

So when I mentioned that leadership needs to establish a safety and health policy, what are some requirements for this policy? Here is what ISO says the policy must do, at a minimum:

• It must include a commitment to provide safe and healthy working conditions for the prevention of work-related injury and illnesses.
• The policy must set up a framework for establishing safety and health goals and objectives. These must be specific to expected hazards or work activities and measured appropriately. Goals must be achievable and relevant to safety and health program elements and set at least annually.
• It has to include a written commitment to meeting basic legal and other requirements as discussed, eliminating or reducing/managing risks, and continuous process improvement of the management system.

Another written commitment needed is the participation of workers and their representatives. 

So here we see leadership commitment moving from theory to putting it on paper. This written policy has to be communicated and available to all employees, as well.

Roles and Responsibilities

To carry out all of the business commitments, the company needs to staff appropriately. As such, every employee has a purpose in the organization which needs to be defined. This includes safety and health. Here is where we need well-written job descriptions and roles and responsibilities.

Roles and responsibilities are critical because every worker, regardless of their position, needs to know what is expected of them when they start work. This is the first impression they get when they join. These expectations need to be measurable or observable. So we want to avoid the high-level language like "support safety efforts," and "demonstrate leadership." We need to define these with actions, spell them out, and communicate them. Download an example of safety and health roles and responsibilities here.

I routinely see companies struggle with middle managers not being "committed," yet when they were hired, none of this was covered with them. When you tell a group of supervisors to "support" safety without defining it, they will come up with their own version. You see now how this all works together? This is what we mean when we say it requires a systems approach.

Worker Participation (Involvement)

When we say worker participation or employee involvement, it has to be meaningful involvement. As mentioned earlier, workers need to be involved in the decision-making process when it comes to safety and health. You cannot say they report hazards, that is a mandate, a condition of employment. Also, OSHA already requires employees to report hazards to the employer. We are talking about involvement in the development of programs, policies, defenses, and improvements moving forward.

Some examples include:

• Serving on a safety committee
• Volunteering as a first aid provider
• Participating in area inspections and/or program audits
• Establishing an incentive program
• Serving on a select team - like ergo, wellness, etc.
• Participating in training programs
• Managing a suggestion program
• Participating in continuous process improvement activities
• Conducting incident investigations
• Planning

Once you have the scope of the organization, all interested parties and begin to size up the safety management system, you have to plan for it. This means accounting for all of the hazards, risks, opportunities, and even legal requirements to ensure the SMS is comprehensive and will achieve its intended goals.

This has to be documented, including the process and actions need to address identified risks and opportunities. So, let's get into what activities support planning for SMS success. 

Hazard Identification

You have to create and maintain a process for hazard identification - this has to be proactive and continuous. Some areas you will need to focus on include:

• How the organization plans and organizes work. Things like workload and shifts, and also discrimination and harassment policies or leadership practices that drive culture.
• Assessing routine and non-routine work. This could be work involving facilities, equipment, tools, processes, products/services offered, assembly operations, construction, disposal, etc.
• A review of past incidents needs to be a big part of hazard identification. This not only includes incidents inside the organization but also outside. Things like local/regional disasters, events created by nearby companies, emergencies, etc.
• You will need to include an assessment of personnel and outside persons. This that have access to the company and property and also those in the vicinity like municipal workers, utilities, neighbors, etc. that could impact the business and also be affected by operations.
• Some other issues to consider for hazard identification include workstation design, layout, operating procedures, adaptability to change, and support for these activities.
• Management of change needs to be considered, as well. In other words, how is the company prepared to support the changes required? How will changes impact safety and health? Is the company set up to manage those?

Another aspect of hazard identification is whether or not there are adequate controls in place or needed. You will need to use a recognized and accepted approach to assessing and determining the level of risk so that appropriate controls can be determined. Hierarchy of controls, for example.

You also want to have a process in place to continually assess work, work areas, processes for improvements, and improvements to the safety management system in general. Things like looking at software solutions to help manage aspects of the system or new equipment to mitigate or manage specific hazards. Continuous improvement is the goal here. But you cannot just say it, you need a process in place to ensure that it is being done.

Finally, you need to have access to the latest regulatory information, whether that be Federal, State, or local. This includes professionals that specialize in this, like Safety Pros. The company needs to be able to demonstrate that it took these legal aspects into account when designing work, processes, etc. This too, can be included in a documented hazard assessment process. All of this info needs to be included in everything from the written safety programs, policies, response plans, and more.

Safety and Health Objectives

The business needs to create safety and health goals and objectives relevant to the different functions of the business and levels of the company. These will need to be consistent with the established safety and health policy, also be measurable, communicated, updated, and monitored as required. You will need to document things such as:

1. what needs to be done
2. what resources are required
3. who will be responsible for what parts
4. a realistic timeframe
5. how you will ensure the results achieve the objectives
6. how will results be scaled across the business

Support for Safety

I mentioned already the need to provide Safety Pros and others trained and qualified to carry out aspects of the SMS. This is but one way to show support for safety. The company must demonstrate employees are competent to comply with and act on behalf of the SMS. This competence can be documented in different ways. Everything from specific training and qualifications to establishing a comprehensive on-the-job training program with evaluations and refresher requirements.

At a minimum, workers must be aware of the SMS policies, objectives, and how their participation leads to its success. You also need to ensure they understand the consequences of not meeting SMS requirements.

Another part of increasing awareness of safety includes communicating the results of learnings from incident investigations - including newly discovered risks or hazards and how the company is managing them. And of course, a clearly communicated stop work policy must be a part of ANY safety and health policy. Employees must be aware of what to do when faced with a hazard or risk that was not previously identified and managed. Don't forget to add the anti-harassment protections they have as well. Very important!

Communication

I have mentioned the word "communicate" many times already, so let's talk about that as a strategic part of the SMS. You need to have a communication process established. That is, when and how often does the company disseminate information? What will you communicate? What channels of communication will the company use? You also need to take into account diversity when communicating. Things like language barriers, literacy in general, culture, and even disability as is the case with the spoken word and the hearing impaired or written communications and visually impaired.

There are also internal communications as well as external; how does the organization handle these?

Documentation

The organization must keep all documentation required by applicable laws and regulations as well as those needed for the SMS, as discussed. But some basic things that ISO requires are as follows:

• Documents need to contain a title, description, date, author or reference number
• Need to follow a standard format, like language, software version, etc. and media like paper, electronic, etc.
• Establish a review and approval process for suitability, adequacy and any changes made

You also have to have controls in place for SMS documents. Are they available for use when needed and by those needing them? Are they protected from being altered, or are sensitive documents protected from unauthorized dissemination? So, establish a written policy spelling out process around the request, access, retrieval, distribution, and use of specific documents, even ones that would normally be considered "public use," like safety data sheets. Also, describe how the organization will store, preserve, and even destroy documents as well as handle changes needed.

Operation

This section covers operational planning and control, eliminating hazards and reducing risks, management of change, procurement and emergency preparedness and response. So those written programs, policies, and procedures are going to be needed here. Some of these are obvious, but one I want to focus on is the management of change (MOC).

Your organization has to establish a process (or set of processes) planned temporary and permanent changes that will affect the SMS. Examples include new products/services, process changes, tools, equipment, workstation, facility layout, new additions to buildings/structures, changes to general work environments, and even workforce changes.

Other changes needing to be addressed, those stemming from other changes. For example, a change in processes may require legal changes, like permitting. Also, the need for more expertise or specialists you do not currently have on staff. And you will need to review any unintended changes as well.

Performance Evaluation

This includes inspections, audits, and analysis of results. These are needed to ensure the SMS is not only achieving its intended objectives but also that those charged with specific activities are fulfilling them as well. You will need to define what needs to be monitored and measured, the methods that will be sued, the criteria against which you will be evaluated, when and how often, and how to communicate the results. This means you will need to establish and maintain a documented audit program. 

Furthermore, top management has to review the organization's safety management system at planned intervals to make sure that it is still adequate and is sustainable. All of the things Safety Pros will be doing, organizational leadership needs to do as well. They cannot just pass it off because they have professionals on staff. I talked about this in a previous episode - assigning key elements of the SMS to others to get them involved. It is a great approach and meets ISO expectations.

Improvement

Finally, the organization has to continuously look for opportunities to improve the SMS and implement needed actions to support any improvements. The first place most of us start is with corrective actions stemming from incident investigations. All recommendations have to be supported by the company. This also serves as evidence of leadership commitment. 

Final Thoughts

As I have mentioned, continuous improvement is a foundational element of any SMS. A lot of what I talked about here focuses first on documenting why and how everything related to SMS will be carried out. In the end, this is a continuous process and cannot merely be created once on paper and forgotten. It is not the traditional written safety program approach. ISO 45001 requires proper documentation, yes, but more importantly, you have to act on what is spelled out in your SMS. That SMS must first start with the scope and context of your unique organization.

The past several episodes discussing SMS, and all of the things that go into it cannot be overlooked. Things like systems thinking, continuous process improvement, root cause analysis, human organizational performance - the mindset and approaches needed to design, implement, and support SMS components. Do not jump straight to writing manuals and policies simply to satisfy a regulating body.

Let me know what you think! Send emails to info@thesafetypropodcast.com. You can find me on LinkedIn! Post a LinkedIn update, letting me know what you think of the podcast. Be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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With proper safety training and an air-tight safety program in your workplace, you won't have to write too many incident reports. However, sometimes, things slip through the cracks, and it results in an incident or near-miss. When this happens, it's not only mandated by OSHA to report it, but it can be imperative in future prevention of similar events.

The best way to go about reporting an incident is to fill out an incident report. The following steps will help you to write an effective incident report that covers all of the necessary elements needed for further action.

You should begin to gather the details almost immediately after receiving news and becoming aware of the incident. Which will help you collect details that are fresh in the minds of those involved, and will help you be able to piece together the factors involved in the incident's occurrence.

Having all the facts is vital in being able to decipher what caused the incident and how it can be prevented in the future. It's also necessary for business insurance purposes and to help make decisions in the final stages of analysis. Critical facts of the incident to include are:

• The date and time it occurred
• The specific location of the incident
• All of those who were involved and their immediate supervisors
  • Names
  • Title of their position
  • The department of employees involved
  • Their immediate supervisor(s)
• Names and accounts of those who witnessed the incident
• The series of events that took place leading up to the incident
• What the employee(s) involved were doing at the exact time of the incident
• The environmental conditions of the location in which it occurred
  • For example, were the floors slippery? Was the area cluttered? Was there a lot of noise? Etc.
• The circumstance or materials involved when it took place
  • For example, the tools, machinery, equipment, or PPE that was involved.
• The specific injuries that were sustained to the involved parties, and what area of the body were affected
• The treatment that was administered to the employees who were injured
• Any damage to the equipment, materials, areas, etc.

Another resource that is beneficial for documenting events is to take pictures of where the incident took place. Note the conditions of the area and the scene(s) of the incident. If available, CCTV footage is another avenue of reviewing the chain of events that led to the incident.

Piecing together the series of events will help determine which factors were involved and how they were involved at the time the incident occurred.

• The details of the events leading up to the incident.
  • What specific actions the employee was doing before the incident
  • What materials, tools, equipment was involved
• Determine what was involved in the incident.
  • What exactly happened to the employee
  • How they were injured
  • Why they were injured
• Identify what happened after the incident.
  • What did the employee do after the incident
  • What kind of reaction did they have
  • How did they signal for help if they were able to
  • How was it discovered that the incident occurred

The details gathered above should be specific enough so that anyone reading the report can seamlessly create a story in their mind, and can, therefore, view the incident as a whole. It often helps to create a diagram to start to analyze the incident visually.

You can now begin to create an in-depth analysis of what caused the events, the factors involved, and ultimately answer the "why" of the incident. With the details you gathered, you should be able to speculate the following items:

• The primary cause (Ex: a machine that wasn't locked out released hazardous energy)
• The secondary causes (Ex. an employee did not check to see if the machine was locked out before maintenance)
• Additional factors (Ex. Employees haven't received their refresher lockout tagout training)

 5. Formulate a preventative action plan

An incident report is useless without a plan to correct actions for future prevention. Every incident is a hard lesson that has yet to be learned or has been overlooked. The following items are examples of areas that may need correcting based on the facts surrounding the incident:

• Adequate employee safety training
• Sufficient and proper maintenance of machinery, equipment, workspace, etc.
• Re-evaluating standard operating procedures regarding specific jobs, and re-assessing how they should be carried out
• Identifying and conducting a job hazard analysis (JHA) to cover all risks associated with particular job tasks thoroughly and carrying out the necessary safety training.
• Operational changes and adjustment that include more thorough safety measures, such as adding additional safety equipment, changing procedures, etc.

A good incident report identifies the problem using in-depth analysis and research and offers a viable solution to that problem. A thorough, well-prepared report will accurately pinpoint what corrective action is necessary so that you may prevent future incidents and keep your team safe!

Reprinted with permission from Atlantic Training

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In this episode, I talk with our good friend Drew Hinton about the ASSP Safety 2021 Conference - his takeaways and insight. Buckle up!

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In her sixth appearance on the podcast, Lori Frederic talks about conditioning ourselves for the movements we can expect to engage in throughout the day. Be sure to visit Balance Biomechanics to learn more about Fit Stop resources. 

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Why do employees sometimes remain silent when they should speak up? Do they fear consequences or repercussions? Do they feel like new ideas won't be considered without an onslaught of criticism about its inherent risks, a barrage of demands for a detailed project plan, or an insistence on immediate proof of an overinflated ROI? To be blunt, why do workers stay silent when they see things are being done improperly, or in an unsafe manner?

Maybe because it's not safe to engage in such conversations, the benefit of saying nothing tends to outweigh the benefit of speaking up. Employees fear their feedback will be rejected, or that managers or even co-workers will go so far as to penalize them. So, they keep their heads down and their mouths shut.

Think about cases where speaking up was stifled or just non-existent; the NASA shuttle disaster or workers at Volkswagen who failed to speak up about fake emissions numbers?

Gallup's data reveal that only three in ten U.S. workers strongly agree that at work, their opinions seem to count. However, by moving that ratio to six in 10 employees, organizations could realize a 27% reduction in turnover, a 40% reduction in safety incidents, and a 12% increase in productivity.

The term we have become familiar with as it relates to this issue is "psychological safety." Let's define it for this conversation; it is "a climate in which people are comfortable being (and expressing) themselves." It has been confirmed that psychological safety predicts quality improvements, learning behavior, and productivity.

An internal study conducted by Google found that teams with high rates of psychological safety were better than other teams at implementing diverse ideas and driving high performance. They were also more likely to stay with the company.

A culture of psychological safety enables employees to be engaged. They can express themselves without the fear of failure or retribution. Juxtapose this type of culture with one where employees feel too intimidated to speak up or share a new idea. It's hard to imagine these employees can mentally allow themselves to be engaged at work.

Four Questions That Lead to Psychological Safety

When looking at why things aren't progressing when it comes to creating a safe environment for folks to speak up, consider the following four questions:

1. For what can we count on each other?
2. What is our team's purpose?
3. What is the reputation we aspire to have?
4. What do we need to do differently to achieve that reputation and fulfill our purpose?

The questions are designed to create a culture of psychological safety. Take note; the order is as important as the questions themselves. The first question speaks to strengths and is fundamental for establishing individual security before diving into the broader team psychological safety challenges.

You may need to help them see a shared purpose and identity with others. Why do they come to work every day? What is the purpose of the production team, HR, safety, quality? How do they achieve that purpose together? Then, with that purpose and process in mind, what do they aspire to be known for in the company? What is the brand they want to create?

This type of activity can help any team establish universal principles by which to work. Some of the ways the organization uses these principles are practical. For example, they use them to filter out and prioritize staff meeting agendas, based on whether agenda topics meet the principles. The HR team might use them when they interact with business partners, setting expectations, and accountability partners with its stakeholders.

Sometimes, however, this all might be a little more theoretical. When a team member needs to ask for help, or bring a new idea or challenge to an existing process, they can couch their request in the language the team uses to describe its collective purpose or brand. The HR Manager or Safety Manager might use the team's principles to explain behavior and coach performance. By consistently using them across the board, these shared guiding principles help them to talk and work together in a way that promotes individual and team psychological safety.

Building the Culture of Psychological Safety

While critical elements like organizational structure, process, and system considerations can influence company culture, the behavioral side of culture is created person by person, team by team, day by day. 

Team and individual safety are both essential, but individual safety must come first in the process of building psychological safety. And it must come first for any hope of improved engagement and performance.

That's what the answers to the four questions can provide; a safety net with which to trust and be open with each other. It allows teams to be vulnerable enough to be engaged. Exploring those four questions can do the same for any group or organization that wants to create a culture of psychological safety.

Leaders and managers can use the four questions to encourage participation, generate ideas and develop honesty. Ideally, every team in an organization would work through the four questions to get to its shared value, purpose, and identity. 

In the best-case scenario, for real culture change to transpire, this has to include -- and start with -- the executive team. Leaders should answer the four questions from a team and organizational perspective. It is when leaders then share their organizational answers with the rest of the company that the expected behavior is encouraged and alignment occurs.

While culture change rarely follows a straight-and-narrow line, a single team can spark a social transformation in any organization. Managers don't have to wait. They can foster psychological safety within their groups or teams immediately by posing and talking through those four questions. They can create an environment where people are safe to engage, safe to address the elephant in the room, and safe to put their whole selves into their work.

Read about this topic and learn more about Gallup here.

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In this podcast episode, I take a break from the technical topics to which my readers and podcast listeners are accustomed. I wanted to interview someone from outside normal safety circles, someone that can bring a unique perspective on the values we want to hold as safety professionals: integrity, honesty, teamwork, never-quit attitude. Please be sure to listen to the interview as it is not transcribed here. Please read more about Kris below.

Kris Paronto

Kris Paronto - "Tanto" as he is affectionately known in security contracting circles - is a former Army Ranger from 2nd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment and a private security contractor who has deployed throughout South America, Central America, the Middle East, and North Africa. He also worked with the US Government's Global Response Staff conducting low profile security in high threat environments throughout the world.

Mr. Paronto was part of the CIA annex security team that responded to the terrorist attack on the US Special Mission in Benghazi, Libya, September 11th, 2012, helping to save over 20 lives while fighting off terrorists from the CIA Annex for over 13 hours. Mr. Paronto's story is told in the book "13 Hours" written by Mitchell Zuckoff and his five surviving annex security team members.

The Patriot's Creed

When Kris began talking with civilians about his experiences fighting the terrorist attack on the US State Department Special Mission Compound in Benghazi, Libya on September 11, 2012, he was surprised at how often people told him that the story of his extraordinary battle gave them the courage to face tough times in their everyday lives. "The odds were stacked against us that night but the truth is that we refused to quit and we beat them with faith, teamwork, and the principles that were first instilled in me when I joined the Army. You can find those in the Rangers Creed and the Army Values," he says, "and you don't have to be a Special Operations soldier to use them."

In The Patriot's Creed, Kris uses the seven core Army Values that all soldiers learn in Basic Combat Training, and the experiences of other servicemen and women and First Responders, to explain how anyone can improve themselves, the world around them, and live a heroic life. The stakes are dramatic for the brave men and women who put their lives on the line to fight for America, and too many of their acts of courage and honor are unknown. The examples of their persistence and discipline will be inspiring to anyone facing seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

At a time of national polarization, Kris draws attention to values all readers can share and use, and to the honor, integrity, and courage of true patriots who have gone to great lengths to protect and serve. They embody the best of us and make Kris Paronto proud to be an American soldier.

The Ranger Way

Thousands of people have heard Kris "Tanto" Paronto speak about his experiences in Benghazi on September 11, 2012. But before he was a security contractor, Tanto was a US Army Ranger from the 2nd Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment. Rangers are trained to lead by being pushed to their physical and mental limits so that they can perform against impossible odds in punishing situations.

In THE RANGER WAY, Tanto shares stories from his training experiences that played a role in his team's heroic response in Benghazi as he explains the importance of demanding excellence when you commit to improving your life. He shows you how to define your mission, set goals that are in alignment with your values, and develop a battle plan that will maximize your chances of success. You will learn why you should never quit and why that is different from never failing. Tanto uses his experiences in Basic and Ranger Training to explore how to deal with mistakes and disappointment like a leader, accept responsibility, and turn every obstacle into an opportunity for growth. You will learn why being of service to others, and being willing to sacrifice, will help you succeed, and how the power of humility, strength, faith, and brotherhood will sustain you on the road to accomplishing your mission.

13 Hours

The harrowing, true account from the brave men on the ground who fought back during the Battle of Benghazi. 13 HOURS presents, for the first time ever, the true account of the events of September 11, 2012, when terrorists attacked the US State Department Special Mission Compound and a nearby CIA station called the Annex in Benghazi, Libya.

A team of six American security operators fought to repel the attackers and protect the Americans stationed there. Those men went beyond the call of duty, performing extraordinary acts of courage and heroism, to avert tragedy on a much larger scale. This is their personal account, never before told, of what happened during the thirteen hours of that now-infamous attack.

Resources

The Patriot's Creed

The Ranger Way

13 Hours

Book Kris for speaking events here

More about Kris

Hear the Interview

Listen to this interview for Kris's perspective on life, the importance of aligning goals with the mission, and living a life of integrity no matter what obstacles you face.

Let me know what you think of this episode on LinkedIn if you have used this app at all - be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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OSHA has a decent list of regulatory agenda items. While I don't want to go through them all, I do want to highlight five that I think are particularly impactful. Safety professionals always need to be looking ahead at what is coming so we can prepare our employers, update any programs, which includes employee training and certifications that may be required. 

1. Lock-Out/Tag-Out Update - Pre-Rule Stage

Recent technological advancements that employ computer-based controls of hazardous energy (e.g., mechanical, electrical, pneumatic, chemical, and radiation) conflict with OSHA's existing lock-out/tag-out standard. The use of these computer-based controls has become more prevalent as equipment manufacturers modernize their designs. 

Additionally, there are national consensus standards and international standards harmonization that govern the design and use of computer-based controls. This approach of controlling hazardous energy is accepted in other nations, which raises issues of needing to harmonize U.S. standards with those of other countries. The Agency has recently seen an increase in requests for variances for these devices. This RFI will be useful in understanding the strengths and limitations of this new technology, as well as potential hazards to workers. The Agency may also hold a stakeholder meeting and open a public docket to explore the issue.

2. Emergency Response and Preparedness - Pre-Rule Stage

OSHA currently regulates aspects of emergency response and preparedness; they promulgated some of these standards decades ago, and none as comprehensive emergency response standards.

Consequently, they do not address the full range of hazards or concerns currently facing emergency responders, nor do they reflect significant changes in performance specifications for protective clothing and equipment. The Agency acknowledged that current OSHA standards also do not reflect all the considerable developments in safety and health practices that have already been accepted by the emergency response community and incorporated into industry consensus standards.

OSHA is considering updating these standards with information gathered through an RFI and public meetings.

3. Mechanical Power Press Update - Pre-Rule Stage

The current OSHA standard on mechanical power presses does not address the use of hydraulic or pneumatic power presses. Additionally, the existing standard is approximately 40 years old and does not address technological changes. OSHA previously published an ANPRM on Mechanical Power Presses (June 2007) in which it identified several options for updating this standard.

The Agency would like to update the public record to determine how best to proceed. This project is under Executive Order 13777, which facilitates the review of existing regulations that may be outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome, and to modify, streamline, expand, or repeal them.

4. Powered Industrial Trucks - Pre-Rule Stage

Powered Industrial Trucks (e.g., fork trucks, tractors, lift trucks, and motorized hand trucks) are ubiquitous in industrial (and many retail) worksites. The Agency's standard still relies upon ANSI standards from 1969.

The Industrial Truck Association has been encouraging OSHA to update and expand the OSHA standard to account for the substantial revisions to ANSI standards on powered industrial trucks over the last 45 years. The current standard covers 11 types of vehicles, and there are now 19 types. Also, the standard itself incorporates an out-of-date consensus standard.

OSHA will begin the process to develop a proposed rule updating the consensus standard referenced from the 1969 version of the American National Standard B56.1 to the 2016 version. This project is also under Executive Order 13777, which facilitates the review of existing regulations that may be outmoded, ineffective, insufficient, or excessively burdensome, and to modify, streamline, expand, or repeal them.

5. Tree Care Standard - Pre-Rule Stage

There is no OSHA standard for tree care operations; the Agency currently applies a patchwork of standards to address the severe hazards in this industry. The tree care industry previously petitioned the Agency for rulemaking. Tree care continues to be a high-hazard industry.

Wrapping it all up

Again, these are just five of the agenda items to watch. How can you keep up on these proposed changes without sitting in front of your computer at www.reginfo.gov? Well, luckily, there is an app for that - RegInfo. With RegInfo Mobile, you can have information about upcoming federal regulations and forms at your fingertips.

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the General Services Administration (GSA) partnered to bring you a mobile version of Reginfo.gov, an online look into agency rulemakings that are on the books, planned, or under review by OMB's Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA).

RegInfo Mobile also provides information about forms and other information collections that OIRA has approved or is currently reviewing under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA). With RegInfo Mobile, you have access to all of this information, and more, to the palm of your hand! Some of the app features are as follows:

• Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions and the Regulatory Plan
• Current and historical information since Fall 1995 edition
• View detailed information about regulations, including regulation identifier number (RIN) title, abstract, effects on society and completed/planned actions for the next six months
• Timeline Chart - an interactive visualization of when proposed and final regulations are published, OIRA reviews of regulations, related information collections, and more!
• Regulatory Reviews
• View detailed information about OIRA's pending and concluded reviews of significant rulemakings
• Meetings with the Public
• Browse the log of past and scheduled public meetings about regulations under OIRA review
• Information regarding each meeting includes RIN, the title of the regulation, date, participants, and affiliations, and written materials submitted by the public
• Information Collection Requests under the PRA
• View detailed information on OIRA's pending and concluded reviews of agency information collection requests (ICRs), including OMB Control Number, expiration date, requested/approved burden on the public, supporting statements, forms, etc.
• Keyword search that returns results for matching RINs, regulatory reviews and ICRs
• Subscribe to a RIN and receive notifications when something happens

Let me know on LinkedIn if you have used this app at all - be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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An LMS is a software application that allows you to share e-learning courses with your learners and track key data about their activity—for example, the amount of time they spend on a course or the score they receive on a quiz. But, did you know you can use most LMS to track instructor-led training as well?

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In this episode, Lori Frederic (The Movement Ninja) takes over the podcast while Blaine is traveling. She discusses how crappy lifts happen, and what to do about them.

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In this episode, we talk with Doug Pontsler about how the Center of Visual Expertise (COVE) is helping workers visualize their workplaces better.

Visit the COVE website to learn more: https://www.covectr.com/home

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Part three in the series on rethinking [safety] culture. In this episode, I discuss how standard work can help build a strong culture in the workplace.

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In this takeover podcast episode, I visited the offices of Gensuite to talk about wearable tech and the impact it has on safety. Hit the links in these show notes for more info on the cloud-based EHS software solutions Gensuite can provide for your business. Join the over 600,000 users that trust Gensuite with their compliance and EHS software needs.

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In this episode, Blaine J. Hoffmann, MS OSHM, talks with attorney Phillip Russell about the OSHA Heat Illness Standard with Blaine J. Hoffmann. Will it stand after the SCOTUS decision to overturn the Chevron deference? Will it be amended?

Check it out and join the conversation by becoming a SafetyPro Community member (it's FREE to join).

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100 Episodes! Thanks to all the listeners that helped make this happen - you are the reason I continue to produce this podcast. Here's to the next 100 episodes!

I got a lot of responses from the last episode and noticed an odd trend each time I release a new one as well. I talk about those here in this bonus episode.

Keep the emails coming! And hey, if you enjoy the info in the podcast please be sure to leave a ranking and review on Apple Podcasts or drop me a personal message using the email address above.

Mentioned in this episode:

www.vppsimplified.com

NIOSH TWH Workbook

ANSI Z-10

Let's talk about culture. What culture do you want? What do you currently have? Look to 2 areas of focus for culture. Listen as I explain.

email info@thesafetypropodcast.com

www.thesafetypropodcast.com

If you want to increase safety engagement between leadership (direct supervisors) and workers try asking what coaching leaders are already getting. Chances are HR is coaching front line supervisors on how to engage workers to increase morale, retention and productivity. Instead of reinventing the wheel, piggyback on what they are already doing.

I have used the Gallup Survey information many times with many clients. It just works! Listen to this episode for details but you can get the one-pager of the 12 questions by clicking HERE. If you are SERIOUS about learning more about this approach, you NEED the book! Click HERE FOR THE BOOK.

And of course, head over to my RESOURCE page for ALL the essential tools you should have! This topic is a good one and I will definitely expand on it in a later episode. Send your thought to info@thesafetypropodcast.com

Be safe, enjoy the Holidays with your friends and family:)

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In this episode, I talk to Grant Morgan, CEO/Co-Founder of RZero. We discuss the use of UVC light to sanitize workspaces most would not consider. 

Please listen and share this episode with others. To see the full-length video interview, become a premium SafetyPro Community member. You will also get access to premium content like video courses, downloads, you can direct message and live chat with the Safety Pro (coming soon) - become a PREMIUM member!

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• In 2020, an estimated 276,480 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in women in the U.S., as well as 48,530 new cases of non-invasive (in situ) breast cancer.
• 64% of breast cancer cases are diagnosed at a localized stage (there is no sign that cancer has spread outside of the breast), for which the 5-year survival rate is 99%.
• This year, an estimated 42,170 women will die from breast cancer in the U.S.
• 1 in 8 women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime
• Breast cancer is the most common cancer in American women, except for skin cancers. It is estimated that in 2020, approximately 30% of all new women cancer diagnoses will be breast cancer.
• There are over 3.5 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
• On average, every 2 minutes, a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer in the United States.

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In the last couple of episodes, I dance around the rescue team parts of the standard. I want to get into that section here. Let's start with an outside rescue option since a lot of folks go this route. If you recall, whenever you use outside resources you must evaluate a prospective rescuer's ability to respond to a rescue summons in a timely manner, considering the hazard(s) identified.

So you have to have done a hazard assessment first so that you can have a meaningful conversation with the outside agency. Also, don't forget, bring them in to do a walk-thru, look at the spaces involved, the internal configurations, chemicals used onsite, etc.

You also have to develop and implement procedures for summoning rescue and emergency services to your location. Ask about whether the local authorities use a regional dispatcher, this may delay response time a little, does your site use a different number to dial out to emergency services, instead of 911? All of this goes into your program and training.

Once you determine the rescue team that will be used, you have to develop a procedure for rescuing entrants from permit spaces and be able to provide necessary emergency services to those workers. The primary requirement in the first aid standards is that an employer must ensure prompt first aid treatment for injured employees, either by providing for the availability of a trained first aid provider at the worksite or by ensuring that emergency treatment services are within reasonable proximity of the worksite.

You have to take appropriate steps prior to any accident (like making arrangements with the service provider) to determine if emergency medical assistance will be promptly available when an injury occurs. While the standards do not prescribe a number of minutes, OSHA has long interpreted the term "near proximity" to mean that emergency care must be available within no more than 3-4 minutes from the workplace, an interpretation that has been upheld by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission and by federal courts.

One option these standards provide employers is to ensure that a member of the workforce has been trained in first aid. This option is, for most employers, a feasible and low-cost way to protect employees, as well as putting the employer clearly in compliance with the standards. OSHA recommends but does not require, that every workplace include one or more employees who are trained and certified in first aid, including CPR.

The first aid training standards at 29 CFR 1910.151 and 1926.50(c) generally apply throughout the industries that they cover. Other standards which apply to certain specific hazards or industries make employee first aid training mandatory, and reliance on outside emergency responders is not an allowable alternative. For example, see 29 CFR 1910. 266(i)(7) (mandatory first aid training for logging employees), and 29 CFR 1910.269(b) (requiring persons trained in first aid at work locations in the electric power industry).

So seriously look at getting a team of volunteers to be trained, on all shifts. More support for this is that medical literature establishes that, for serious injuries such as those involving stopped breathing, cardiac arrest, or uncontrolled bleeding, first aid treatment must be provided within the first few minutes to avoid permanent medical impairment or death.

Also, in workplaces where serious accidents such as those involving falls, suffocation, electrocution, or amputation are possible, emergency medical services must be available within 3-4 minutes, if there is NO EMPLOYEE on the site who is trained to render first aid. So this can buy a victim more time if folks are trained and equipped onsite already.

OSHA exercises discretion in enforcing the first aid requirements in particular cases. OSHA recognizes that a somewhat longer response time of up to 15 minutes may be reasonable in workplaces, such as offices, where the possibility of such serious work-related injuries is more remote.

Now, I will restate what the standard says: In the absence of an infirmary, clinic, or hospital in near proximity to the workplace which is used for the treatment of all injured employees, a person or persons shall be adequately trained to render first aid. Adequate first aid supplies shall be readily available. This is a way to meet that standard!

And, for an in-house rescue team, at least one member of the rescue team or service holding a current certification in first aid and CPR is available. Trust me, ALL of them should have it. What if the only member trained in 1st aid goes down? So spread the love folks!

So what does this tell us? Well, it tells us we need to carefully examine and consider the actual hazards likely to be present as well as the injuries and illnesses likely to occur. This has to be included in the training in order for us to claim our in-house first aid team is "adequate".

Let, me illustrate this for you; A lot of the first aid training programs I have reviewed are really good at preparing you (as best as possible) for an emergency. They cover what to do, how to react, things like that. A lot of effort goes into keeping the responder safe; bloodborne pathogens, PPE, checking the scene; which is great. Then there are sections that get into how to perform a patient survey, for both an unconscious and conscience patient. And then there are sections of training covering how to stop bleeding and immobilize a limb maybe.

Here is where you need to be sure to include covering injuries likely to occur at your facility. Work with the instructor ahead of time to include how to treat a chemical burn, and be specific - like hydrochloric acid, or chlorine gas for example. This site-specific or even chemical or hazard-specific training is what will deem your personnel "QUALIFIED" to render first aid at your facility. The basic community first aid training, just won't be enough.

Okay, let's move on to an in-house rescue team. First, they have to be equipped for and proficient in performing the needed rescue services. Do you have underground tanks? Do they have rectangular, square or round entry points, or a combination? This tells me what types of hoists I will need to have available for rescue. What about horizontal spaces? Are some of them above grade, requiring staging from an elevated platform? This tells me aerial lifts, personnel hoists, stair chairs, stokes baskets, etc may be needed as well. What about SCBA, airline respirators, things like that for rescue teams?

So equipped means just that; equipment needed to facilitate a rescue from any and all possible spaces to be entered. Standardization really helps but some older facilities that have been upgraded and modified over the years do not have this luxury. But think about this moving forward; standardize openings (their shape and size) whenever possible, and their location (at grade vs. elevated openings, things like that.). This ALL has to be set up and gone over each time you have training for this team. Every piece, all the PPE that may be needed, all of the monitoring instruments, everything!

Ensure that rescue and other affected employees (like potential victims) practice making permit space rescues at least once every 12 months. This has to be by way of a simulated rescue in which you remove dummies, manikins, or actual persons from the actual permit spaces or from representative permit spaces. Representative permit spaces shall, with respect to opening size, configuration, and accessibility, simulate the types of permit spaces from which rescue is to be performed. I have seen a few facilities that have old tanks that have been cleaned and the sides cut open but they keep them onsite as a training aid for this purpose. Of course, you may not have the room for this, but that was a representative space from them.

Of course, non-entry rescue is where it's at whenever possible. If your rescue personnel never have to enter this is best. To facilitate non-entry rescue, retrieval systems or methods have to be used whenever an authorized entrant enters a permit space unless the retrieval equipment would increase the overall risk of entry or would not contribute to the rescue of the entrant.

So practicing at LEAST every 12-months is the OSHA standard. I recommend quarterly just so that you can reinforce these procedures and familiarize rescue teams with this equipment better. Also, hold a monthly first responder meeting instead of just the annual refresher for first aid and every two years for CPR recertification. This is a "use it or lose it" skill, it's perishable, so keeping it fresh is going to help save lives. Give your responders a chance to talk about scenarios, practice first aid techniques in the meetings, dry runs, even debrief past responses since the last meeting to see what went right, what could be better, things like that. It will really add value and enhance the bare minimum OSHA sets for this stuff.

Look at your training program; what is it missing? What don't you cover that we just ran through? How can you enhance your existing training? Make it stick? This is the challenge I have for you: do a full review of your written confined space entry program, the written permit, the rescue plan, your chosen method of rescue (non-entry, in-house or outside rescue team) and try to poke holes in the plans. That way you can improve it.

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You can find me on LinkedIn! Post a LinkedIn update letting me know what you think of the podcast. Be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter

1. In this episode, I answer listener questions about workplace safety and compliance. To leave me a voice message with a question to answer on the podcast please visit my website. Click HERE to ask the SafetyPro!

Also mentioned in this episode is my 5 tips to navigate the OSHA website without losing your mind! You really want this cheat sheet if you find yourself looking up info on their website. Click HERE to get it now!

Get the Book "Rethinking SAFETY Culture" Today!

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Recorded LIVE from the 2025 TapRooT® Global Summit in Knoxville, TN, Blaine J. Hoffmann talks with special guests Adam Britton and Justin Clark about developing strategies to help your organization focus on preventing these incidents.

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We've teamed up with the Amplify folks once again to bring you an episode on emergency planning and response. Wesley Carter will cover the general industry requirements, what PSM says, and a bit about RMP's requirements. If you work at a PSM-covered facility, or in an industry where safety is essential, you don't want to miss this episode.

CCPS Process Safety Beacon - Emergency Preparation - The Titanic Disaster (July 2012)

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Get the Book "Rethinking SAFETY Culture" Today!

Get the Book "Rethinking SAFETY Culture" Today!

Get the book that busts the "safety culture" myth and emphasizes defining clear roles and responsibilities to align safety initiatives with operational tasks. Explore how safety standard work can be effectively integrated into daily routines, fostering a collective commitment to safety from top to bottom. As well as how to measure your success.

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In this episode, Blaine talks to VPPPA Chairperson Terry Schulte about the early days of VPP, busting VPP myths, and the advantages of being a part of the VPPPA community.

Check out the VPPPA National Safety+ Symposium in Washington, DC, August 23-25, 2022.

Click here to register:

https://www.vpppa.org/events/safety-symposium/

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Podcasting from the 2020 ACI/OSHA Safety Day. Listen as I talk with Eric Lee Buschard as he explains his evolution as a safety pro. He shared his take on "Speaking Safety" to workers at a breakout session during the event.

Let me know what you think of this episode on LinkedIn if you have used this app at all - be sure to @ mention Blaine J. Hoffmann or The SafetyPro Podcast LinkedIn page. You can also find the podcast on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Special announcement! Mighty Line Floor Tape is now the official floor tape and floor marking company for the SafetyPro Podcast! All of your industrial floor marking needs in one place. Visit www.mightylinetape.com/podcast to learn more.

Where are you on the culture maturity curve? How do you chart this? Click HERE to download the free graph and listen as I talk about the different levels of safety culture and how you can tell where your company is right now. Click HERE to join the email list!

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In this episode, I talk to Mark Paradies, CEO of System Improvements, Inc. Also known as The TapRooT® Folks! Be sure to check out their site!

We discuss human error as a root cause, and what businesses can do to better prepare their leaders for root cause analysis. We even get into how important precursor incidents (near misses) are to safety performance.

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Be sure to visit www.thesafetypropodcast.com and send emails to info@thesafetypropodcast.com

Regular meetings can be beneficial to your business (if done right). In this episode I want to talk about meetings. Yes, the dreaded business meeting. But don't worry, I have some great tips for you to follow so you can make sure your business meetings don't put folks to sleep, turn employees off to being engaged, or make you look like a knucklehead!

No matter why you are having the meeting, some simple rules apply; the meeting should be specific, you should only invite those absolutely needed, and you must understand what makes a meeting BAD! So you can avoid it.

In his book, Death by Meeting: A Leadership Fable About Solving the Most Painful Problem in Business, Patrick Lencioni talks about four types of meetings:

1. The Daily Check-in
2. The Weekly Tactical
3. The Monthly Strategic
4. The Quarterly Off-Site

Here I want to talk about the first 3. Specifically the third one - the monthly strategic meeting. Ask yourself what information is important enough to pull employees together once a week, or once a month and sit down to review? This can be difficult. Fear not! I break it all down in this episode.

Get the book mentioned in this episode by clicking HERE

In this episode, I discuss the importance of meaningful employee involvement in the safety and health management system.

Some barriers to employee involvement in the safety and health management system:

-Disregarding the fact that all injuries and illnesses result from exposure to hazards.

-Perception by employees that management is primarily interested in disciplining "un-safe" acts without adequately addressing hazards and root causes.

-Personnel actions, such as promotions, compensation, demotions, disciplines, and re-assignments that are administered in such a way as to reduce or undermine the commitment to safety.

-Treating worker behavior as though it is a root or underlying cause rather than identifying hazards or system-related causes.

-Administering a post-accident program, such as drug testing, in a way that discourages injury reporting

-Not implementing hazard recognition and control measures and/or ignoring the hierarchy of controls.

-Blaming employees with undue emphasis on discipline instead of implementing system changes.

-Uneven accountability – focusing only on the line/hourly worker and not addressing "behavior" of supervisors, senior management and corporate leadership.

-Employee perception that production takes precedence over their personal safety and health.

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Labels still create problems for many employers. Learn what is needed and listen to some examples of what to do and not do when it comes to labels in the workplace.

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In this episode, Blaine talks with fellow safety professional, Kyle Domin about the differences between eye wash stations, portable eye wash units, and eye rinse bottles.

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Visit Mighty Line Tape for all of your facility marking needs. Order your free sample of floor tape TODAY!

Visit Arrow Safety for all of your safety service needs. Remember to mention we sent you to get 25% off your estimate!

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From parking lots to chipped teeth, this episode has me covering interesting OSHA recordkeeping scenarios from listeners.

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The all-new SafetyPro Community is available! 

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