3.2 Improving Health and Safety Culture

The following factors all affect safety culture.

Gaining the commitment of management

Commitment from top management is the main driver of occupational health and safety. When it is missing, little or nothing can be achieved in terms of compliance.

Senior managers must give the leadership that inspires and motivates managers at every level to pursue health and safety objectives as firmly as they pursue production goals.

The behaviour below describes best practice for management commitment and improvement.

• Management understands how important the behaviour of senior managers is for a sound OHS culture.
• Health and safety is raised with a wide audience whenever possible.
• It is discussed first, or at least early, on the agenda of every meeting. Managers give equal attention to good and bad news, praising good behaviour and treating bad news as a chance to improve.
• Adequate resources are provided, and employees are encouraged to help shape OHS strategies, policies and measures.
• Management responds to OHS issues.
• OHS is built into major decisions, such as the choice of subcontractors and suppliers and the purchase of materials and equipment (including PPE).
• Performance measures show constantly how well the company does on OHS.
• Management sets long-term OHS goals and encourages continuous improvement.
• Managers visibly spend time with the workforce on OHS topics.
• Health and safety is discussed with clients, contractors and subcontractors as well as among managers and supervisors.
• Supervisors and line managers are held accountable for OHS as well as senior managers.

The HSE publishes guidance on the importance of leadership and on how managers can review their own health and safety behaviour.

Leadership involvement and the proper use of discipline

Management provides the leadership, vision and resources that an effective safety and health programme needs. Management leadership means that owners and managers:

• make worker safety and health a core value of the organisation
• are fully committed to eliminating hazards, protecting workers and continuously improving safety and health
• provide enough resources to carry out and maintain the programme
• visibly demonstrate and communicate their commitment to workers and others
• set an example through their own actions

A leader promotes health and safety standards through leadership and example, in particular by:

• keeping attention on the significant risks and on adequate controls
• showing commitment through action, and being aware of the key issues
• promoting fair treatment, open reporting and learning, while investigating deliberate unsafe behaviour through a consistent process
• monitoring progress and tracking performance
• sharing expertise to help workers overcome barriers
• rewarding workers who work safely
• motivating people to create a shared vision through safety goals
• involving them in planning and decision making
• making sure everyone knows what they need to do
• consulting the workforce on health and safety
• challenging unsafe behaviour promptly

Sometimes disciplinary procedures are needed to enforce safety rules. Used properly, discipline shows the organisation's commitment to safety by enforcing the rules and procedures that keep people safe. It encourages employees to stay alert to safety protocols, especially in high-risk tasks such as hot work, work near energised systems and lockout/tagout jobs. To enforce compliance effectively, a disciplinary programme must be:

• communicated
• progressive
• applied fairly
• enforced consistently
• documented

Summary notes for Element 3 · Cheat sheet · Glossary. A study aid, not published or endorsed by NEBOSH.