An owner or a manager that is highly vis-ible, walking around the jobsite and talking to workers, promotes good will. It is here where a manager or owner can communicate firsthand how he or she feels about safety or business in general. Visibility of simple things like “Safety First” buttons, catchy slogans, colorful posters or even taking the time to deliver a five-minute toolbox safety talk reinforces to your staffs that you are sincere about the idea of safety. No matter how you do it, you need to suc-cessfully advertise safety in the workplace. Planning To Train Regardless of the size of your organization, you need to know where to go for answers. Available at your disposal is www.OSHA. gov, a website that provides myriad facts, plans, sample forms and statistics to help you navigate the compliance conundrum. The National Safety Council has additional information that can assist in structuring a safety culture. You need to understand safety in general and all of the components of safety. For instance, how does your cleaning business mesh into the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR)? As a specific component of safety, you will need to become familiar with 29 CFR1910 Regulations. Again, refer to the OSHA website for spe-cific answers and planning. If you are unsure where to begin, OSHA training courses are available and the loca-tions of their facilities can be found online. You can also contact representatives of OSHA to request assistance in setting-up safety education through their Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP). In 2012, SHARP completed 11,534 on-site consultations for companies with one to 25 employees and 6,535 visits for companies of 26 to 100 employees. Prepare your training curriculum by initially looking at your job hazard analysis. A good practice is to coordinate the job hazard analysis with the development of your hazard communication standard. Identify the greatest occupational haz-ards your staffs encounter and start the training there. In gathering your facts, enlist the aid of your workers through open communication, which breeds intangible attributes like trust and respect. According to OSHA, you need to train in three circumstances: 1. When new employees are hired 2. When equipment, chemicals or pro-cesses change 3. Annually to prove competency. During your sessions, make sure the train-ing informative and keep the material you are teaching relevant to the occupational exposures your staffs may encounter in their respective job functions. All training efforts are another opportu-nity to restate the importance of a safe work environment, so never miss out on such a chance with a captive audience. It is all well and good to have senior man-agement endorse a safety plan; however, they must establish benchmarks on safety and hold people accountable. Senior management must express a sense of pride in determining benchmarks and provide feedback to staffs. Just as importantly, workers must feel empowered to communicate good or bad situations without fear of recrimination. If an employee has a concern or recog-nizes an unsafe circumstance, they must feel they can initiate a remedy or announce an alarm. Do not allow a complaint from a staff member fall on deaf ears. Investigate their report, go over the situa-tion, explain, if necessary, what actions will occur and then thank them for their concern before letting others know what happened. People will watch to see if what you preach is for real; your actions speak louder than words. As an owner or manger, you are changing how people think and act; you are trying to create a paradigm shift in behavioral atti-tudes, which is not an easy task. Your subordinate managers or supervisors must share your feelings or they will under-mine your efforts. Developing a safety committee may help avoid this type subterfuge altogether. tive roles, as those personnel providing the hands-on daily cleaning understand the nuances beyond what make the process safe or profitable. To make the committee worthwhile and to keep discussions on track, you need a mis-sion statement and a vision statement similar to that of your overall business plan. It is important to record the minutes of each meeting and allow outside members special attendance privileges if they have a particular concern or idea to share with the committee. If people feel they are in danger of becom-ing injured, they may resort to whistleblow-ing; however, by being a proactive manager and establishing a committee that addresses safety, you may prevent an unsafe situation and avoid any whistleblowing in the first place. Make your staffs feel like they are a part of your efforts — because they are. Respect their exertions and appreciate their ethic and desire to make the jobsite a better, safer place to work. When your workers reflect the culture of safety you have established, your customers will see the shift in attitude. When your customers feel they are being serviced by a world class organization with the highest regard for safety, it is a win-win for all parties involved. CM Additional Publications You Might Find Useful Below are some insightful readings that may further assist in generating ideas for developing and implementing a success-ful safety and business culture. “The Wisdom of Teams,” Katzenbach and Smith, 1994 “Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team,” Patrick Lencioni, 2005 “Good to Great,” Jim Collins, 2001 “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” Stephen Covey, 1989 Committing To Safety A safety committee should consist of both frontline workers and those in authorita-www.cmmonline.com 31
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