As we wait for the Winter to come to an end, now is the time to review your Emergency Action Plan and how it specifically addresses Spring weather hazards for your employees. We should assess for the types of hazards that Spring weather presents to the employees. Then review with our employees how these hazards […]

Fatalities caused by falls from elevation continue to be a leading cause of death for construction employees, accounting for 351 of the 1,008 construction fatalities recorded in 2020 (BLS data). Those deaths were preventable. (https://www.osha.gov/stop-falls-stand-down, 02/02/2022) While the statistics are not stated here, there are many worker fatalities in the manufacturing/industrial industries (General Industry) as […]

West Virginia University Safety & Health Extension, through an OSHA Susan Harwood Training Grant has developed another outstanding training course titled “Fundamentals of Safety Leadership for the Oil & Gas Industry”. This training is a 3-hour course. Safety leadership is everyone on the team, crew, site. There is a distinct difference between leadership and management. […]

The next step is to change the “informal” management system to remove the rewards for risky behaviors and encourage safe behaviors. As was reviewed in the January blog titled “Management System Rewards Risky Behaviors”, the “informal” management system where the Manager, Supervisor, and workers interact to conduct business operations is evident in the company culture […]

Many companies have had to complete and post their OSHA 300A Annual Summary for 2021. While it is an exercise required by OSHA, it also gives good indications as to how a company is doing more so as a lagging indicator. OSHA considers a Recordable Injury as being severe enough to require medical attention beyond […]

As was mentioned in the December 2021 blog titled “Risk Vs. Reward”, workers think of the reward first then they may or may not consider the risk. I contend that many worker behaviors and decisions, some resulting in unsafe behaviors or injuries or fatalities, are based upon the management system in which they work, the […]

What is the difference between risk versus reward and reward versus risk? Traditionally, Safety Professionals determine if the risk presented by a hazard/activity is tolerable or intolerable and worth the reward. Workers, generally, think of the reward first then they may or may not consider the risk. One way to understand risk versus reward is […]