Some Things Never Change-But Maybe They Should – 5/2/22

Safety E-QuickTips

U.S. Compliance Systems, Inc.

Monday May 2, 2022

Some Things Never Change – But Maybe They Should

Looking back through more than 10 years of Safety E-QuickTips, I found one from 11 years ago that I can honestly say still holds true today. I wish it didn’t. Let’s take a look.

I was reminded this week of just how much we will do as individuals and as companies when it comes to helping employees and coworkers when their lives are turned upside down due to an accident or illness.

One of our clients has an employee recently diagnosed with cancer and undergoing expensive treatments. A benefit was planned to raise funds and fliers were sent to all job sites asking for other employees to make donations. This benefit raised thousands of dollars for this sick gentleman.

This client also has a safety incentive program for its employees with a free lunch awarded to the “Project of the Month.” In another amazing show of kindness, the first Project of the Month asked that management donate the funds for the lunch to this co-worker. Keep in mind that the company has several hundred employees, so it’s possible that these generous donations came from co-workers who had never met the employee in need.

It’s truly inspiring when I hear stories about this kind of generosity. But when did we forget how much our employees, co-workers and friends really mean to us that we have allowed safety to become more about the paper than about the people?

Don’t get me wrong, I know that we don’t want to see anyone getting injured in the workplace, but it seems that everyone is putting more time and effort into paper than trying to drive home the importance of safety in the workplace.

Employers are asking their employees to sign off on more safety issues than ever. Owners and general contractors are asking the trades and industries that work for them for more and more paper to show that they have a safety program and have documented training. Some are even going to the point of having third party safety consultants request information from companies that doesn’t even pertain to the work that is being performed.

OSHA has jumped on the bandwagon and seems to have made employee safety more about money and holding employers accountable than protecting America’s Workforce – the reason OSHA was established in the first place.

Safety programs are necessary. We need to train our employees on how to protect themselves from hazards in the workplace. But I also believe it’s time that we all take a moment each day to remind those we work with to make a special effort to work safely today. If we do that, I believe we will be a step closer to having the safest workplace possible for all of us. And just maybe OSHA will get the hint and get back to helping employers better understand how to protect their employees and get away from
being the new sheriff in town.

Employee QuickTip

Please do your part this week to make it a safe work site for everyone.

Employer/Management QuickTip

As management you can change how your employees and your company looks at workplace safety. Use the tools available to you today to help ensure your employees go home at the end of the day in the same condition they came to work.

Have you received your first Safety E-QuickTip or just want to look at 500+ past issues? Check out our Safety E-QuickTips Archive Page on our website.

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Thanks for Reading and Please – Stay Healthy and Work Safe.