Archive for Awakenings

“Not Enough Employees” – An under-rated cause of employee accidents is employers not having enough employees to do the job. Management of course always wants to hold down the number of employees as much as possible to reduce this operating expense.  Often in their push to control head count, they go too far and end up […]

“Learn Spanish” – I am sometimes asked by young safety students and unemployed safety professionals  “What can I do to increase my chances of finding a good safety job?”  My response is “Learn Spanish!” More and more manufacturing companies and construction companies are hiring Hispanic workers.  For many, their entire workforce speaks only Spanish. Being […]

“Compliance Isn’t Good Enough” – Compliance with governmental safety standards should be considered the minimum baseline requirement.   Progressive companies that truly care about the safety and health of their employees will go beyond the governmental requirements and provide even greater protection to their employees. How does one go about finding more protective standards?  Check with your counterparts at […]

“The Worst Place To Work” – Over my 40-plus safety career I have worked for and with hundreds of manufacturing companies.  Generally speaking, the worst place for a safety professional to work is a small to medium-sized “private” company. “Public” companies (those owned by stock holders and traded on an exchange) on the other hand […]

“The Key To Safety” – I have four grown children.  When they were growing up I had one unbreakable rule that I drilled into their heads.  One rule that I would never allow to be broken.  One rule that if violated, there’d be hell to pay.  That simple rule was “do not drink and drive”. […]

“Document Everything” – As a safety professional, at some point in your career you will be called upon to handle the investigation and management of a serious on-the-job accident.    Besides trying to identify and correct the root causes of the accident, you will also be responsible for mitigating your companies’ exposure to governmental fines and keeping your […]

“Be A Problem Solver” – There are two types of safety professions – the problem “solver” type, and the problem “finder” type! The problem “finder” is also know as the enforcer or cop.  These folks are always out looking to find something wrong, kind of like they are playing a game of “gotcha”. The problem […]

“Some Accidents Are Not Preventable” – For years, many of us have heard an old saying that proclaims “all accidents are preventable”.  As safety professionals we’d like to believe that we control our own destiny and that accidents are indeed preventable. However, in my 40-plus year career, I have run into a number of accidents […]

“Manage Your Outside Inspectors” – Every company is subject to many and various outside inspectors who regularly visit their locations.  These inspectors are from the:  insurance company, fire department, government safety agencies (e.g. OSHA), and even the corporate headquarters. These many inspectors have great power and can: levy fines, increase insurance premiums or cancel your policy, generate […]

“Drugs & Alcohol Can Wreak Your Program” – There is an association between drug and alcohol use and workplace injuries.  The AIHA says –  “Drug or inappropriate alcohol use may simply be a marker of risk-taking behavior.  As a rule, men more frequently use drugs than do women. In addition, single people are more likely to use […]