Monday, June 16, 2008

Improve Your Safety Metrics Without Making Your Workplace Safer 7 Tips

Writen by Mike Strawbridge

So many people are concerned with lowering their TCIR number or simply meeting their safety goals that they loose sight of the issue of actually making the workplace safer. I have even seen this attitude expressed through some safety governing bodies in my years working with safety.

If you want to improve your safety numbers here are some tips:

  1. Make employees scared to report accidents by making veiled threats like drug testing, punitive accident investigations, loss of privileges, long reporting forms etc.

  2. Make employees scared to report injuries through peer pressure. Establish an incentive plan for the whole group so that the benefit will be lost if any one-person reports and injury.
  3. Reduce the number of recordable injuries by working with your attending physician so that he does not write a prescription or otherwise trigger a recordable event.
  4. Lower TCIR by inflating the number of hours worked. Since the hours worked is in the denominator, make this number as large as possible. Include all office staff, salespeople, interns, co ops, contractors, anyone who can have any connection with your group that are not likely to report an injury.
  5. Include safety performance improvement to each supervisor's salary review. He will make sure that employees are discouraged from reporting injuries.
  6. Assume every employee who reports an injury is faking and plans to sue the company. Treat each case consistently and the word will get around.
  7. Spend hours reviewing the OSHA or corporate rules for what constitutes a recordable event. Get to know every loophole for how to avoid listing it on the chart. Document why you did not record them in case of an audit.

To find ways to really make your workplace safer see:

http://mikestrawbridge.com/workplace-safety-training.shtml

Mike Strawbridge is the owner of Straw Solutions Performance Improvement Consulting. He enjoys finding ways to improve any process including how to make more money in your business http://www.mikestrawbridge.com

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