CRICOS No 00213J Organisational Models Applied to Work-Related Road Safety PhD Scholar:Tamara Banks Supervisors: Assoc Prof Jeremy Davey, Dr Herbert Biggs, Dr Mark King Funding Body: NRMA-ACT Road Safety Trust

Work Related Road Safety  Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995  ‘a workplace is any place where work is, or is to be, performed by a worker or a person conducting a business or undertaking’. This includes ‘a vehicle supplied by an employer for use by a worker in the performance of work’.  Statutory obligations to provide safe workplaces, safe plant & equipment, safe systems of work & safety info, instruction, training & supervision.  Total cost work related road incidents in Aust approx $1-1.5 billion pa (Wheatley, 1997)  Average total insurance cost of a fleet incident is approx $28,000 (Davey & Banks, 2005)  Most common mechanism for Aust compensated fatalities - 35% (ASCC, 2006).

Aim  Limited guidance  ‘One size fits all’ approach  Contribute to theoretical understanding of org factors that influence WRRS (dissertation & papers)  Provide info to assist practitioners in developing & implementing appropriate WRRS initiatives (applications for OH&S)

Research Questions Central research question How can WRRS be improved in an organisation? Sub questions: 1.What outcomes have been observed in previously investigated WRRS interventions? 2.What facilitators & barriers are involved in implementing WRRS interventions? 3.Do organisational differences in readiness for change, organisational culture, fleet safety climate or safety ownership relate to WRRS perceptions, practices & outcomes?

Research & Theories investigated  Transtheoretical Model of Change (Prochaska, DiClemente & Norcross, 1992)  pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance, termination  Safety Ownership (Barrett, Haslam, Lee, & Ellis, 2005; Dingsdag, Biggs, Sheahan & Cipolla, 2006)  extent ownership is shared, position of the primary change owner

Research & Theories investigated  Theory of Cultural Influence (Hofstede, 1980, 2001)  power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculinity v’s femininity, individualism v’s collectivism & long term v’s short term orientation  Fleet Safety Climate (Wills, 2003, Banks, Davey & Brownlow, 2006)  management commitment, trusting relationships & communication, work demands, policies & procedures

Research Design 4 Australian Case Study Organisations Triangulation with qualitative & quantitative methods Phase 1: Audit of WRRS policies, practices & processes Phase 2: In-depth Interviews Phase 3: Brief Survey to whole of business

Interesting Preliminary Findings  WRRS facilitators = Passionate leader, management support, existing focus on safety  WRRS barriers = complacency, diverse departments  Initiatives often not evaluated!  +ve results – safe vehicle selection, ph number on vehicles, consequences for ‘at fault’, some driver ed.  Stage-matched initiatives were perceived favourably  Position of primary safety owner was related to WRRS practices  Shared safety ownership associated with better WRRS practices

Work-Related Road Safety Applications  Communicate Management support for WRRS  Increase awareness of WH&S responsibilities  Include managing road safety in job descriptions  Adopt a stage-matched approach to road safety initiatives:  Pre-contemplation - awareness raising, highlight risk  Contemplation - reinforce safety motivation, educate how to drive safe  Preparation - support, resolve barriers, goal set safety  Action - ongoing advice, feedback, skills training  Maintenance - ongoing advice, feedback, monitor for signs of relapses

Key References Banks, T., Davey, J. & Brownlow, D. (2006). Driver education and fleet safety climate in an emergency service fleet. Journal of Occupational Health and Safety, 22 (4) Barrett, J.H., Haslam, R.A., Lee, K.G. & Ellis, M.J. (2005). Assessing attitudes and beliefs using the stage of change paradigm – case study of health and safety appraisal within a manufacturing company. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 35, Dingsdag, D.P., Biggs, H.C., Sheahan, V.L. & Cipolla, D.J. (2006). A Construction Safety Competency Framework: Improving OH&S performance by creating and maintaining a safety culture. Cooperative Research Centre for Construction Innovation. Brisbane, Australia. Hofstede, G. (2001). Cultures consequences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Prochaska, J.M., Prochaska, J.O., & Levesque, D.A. (2001). A transtheoretical approach to changing organizations. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 28(4), Wills, AR, Watson, B & Biggs, HC. (2004). The influence of fleet safety climate on work-related driver safety. In the proceedings of the Road Safety Research, Education and Policing Conference, Perth, November.