Talking about how important safety is at your company is one thing, actually making sure it’s a safe place to work is another.

An April 2012 article in the blog Workers’ Comp Insider reported on a study conducted by the University of Georgia’s College of Public Health. The study looked at the 2002 General Social survey and the NIOSH Quality of Work Life module.

The survey is quoted in the April blog post as putting “hard numbers behind a long-held perception: that there’s a correlation between safety climate and workplace injuries.”

The study came to the conclusion that efforts to ensure a “culture of workplace safety” need to “be more closely coordinated between Human Resources and health & safety, and to break down the barriers that so often exist in organization,” the post stated.

The article even adds that the study found that how a plant or office “looked” to safety inspectors when they first arrived often was a key indicator of how safe a place was. The study, according to the blog post, found that safety was a “pervasive value that you notice from the minute you walk in the door until you leave.”

So just what is a “safety culture”? The post listed the “key components” the study stated that indicate a workplace was dedicated to the safety of its employees. They are, according to the blog post:

• The commitment to health and safety needs to start at the top of the organization. If a company’s leaders don’t make it a priority, it won’t be a priority.
• The company must dedicate “sufficient resources” to ensuring the safety of employees. These resources include “dedicated budgets, staff, and resources commensurate with the goals.” This also means maintaining facilities and equipment and allocating training funds.
• Written policies and policies and procedures are critical. These policies should cover each position as well as the company’s overall health and safety principles.
• Everyone should be accountable, from management to line staff. Everyone. “Health & safety goals should be a part of every job description and every performance review at every level of the organization,” the blog states.
• Health and safety should be “addressed in a meaningful way” at employee orientation.
• Employee involvement in the process should be “strong.”
• A process for “analyzing all accidents and near misses” should be in place.
• Does the company have a way to recognize and celebrate progress?

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