1. Gauging Your Safety Culture
Presented by Timothy Grebe
TQS Consulting, LLC
Revised May 2017

2. ? How can we determine if a safety culture exists?
How do we gauge our safety culture?
How do we determine what level of safety culture exists in our organization?
TQS Consulting, LLC

3. What is Safety Culture?
Culture – the beliefs, customs, arts, etc., of a particular society, group, place, or
: a particular society that has its own beliefs, ways of life, art, etc.
: a way of thinking
: the set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution or organization …(
The Way things get done around here. Easy definition used in the workplace.
TQS Consulting, LLC

4. What is Safety Culture?
Safety – the state of being safe, the condition of being protected against physical, social, spiritual, financial, political, emotional, occupational, psychological, educational or other types or consequences of failure, damage, error, accidents, harm or any other event which could be considered non-desirable.
The control of recognized hazards to achieve and acceptable level of risk. (Wikipedia)
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5. What is Safety Culture, continued:
“The control of recognized hazards to achieve an acceptable level of risk in the way we get things done in the workplace.” – Unknown “A safety culture exists within an organization [when] each individual employee, regardless of position, assumes an active role in error prevention and that role is supported by the organization” - Technical report ARL-0203/FAA-02-2
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6. How Do We Instill a Safety Culture?
Commitment from Leadership at the highest level.
Employee involvement, from the beginning phase.
Employee values, beliefs, and assumptions.
Employee perceptions of safety at their workplace.
Policies and procedures
Responsibility and accountability
Actions, or lack of actions, to correct unsafe behaviors and conditions.
Changing perception that safety is only for the workplace, make it personal.
TQS Consulting, LLC

7. Behavioral Based Safety
Evolution of Culture
Industry Standards
OSHA Act of 1970
Behavioral Based Safety
Safety Culture
Process Safety
Labor Unions
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8. Data Analysis What is the data?
leading indicators
lagging indicators
Even a small dip in performance can be an indicator of underlying issues.
Can assist with determining when focus should be placed in specific areas or topics
What is the data, both from leading indicators to lagging indicators telling us?
Even a small dip in performance can be an indicator of underlying issues.
Can assist with determining when focus should be placed in specific areas or topics
TQS Consulting, LLC

9. Data Analysis
Data analysis, a key component of any management system, may include:
Fishbone Diagram
Pareto Chart
Flowchart
Check Sheet
5 Whys
Focus on leading indicators but don’t ignore the lagging indicators.
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10. Are employees actively engaging the Safety process?
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11. Safety included in the process
Employee Involvement
Risk Assessment
Safety Meetings
Near Misses
Safety Committees
Observations
JSA’s
Employee Involvement – Are employees actively engaging the Safety process?
Do you find employees stepping up and engaging in the safety process?
Do you hear about incidents occurring and find no record of a report?
While walking through your facility do you discover damaged equipment, discharged fire extinguishers or empty eyewash stations and no incident has been reported?
Are near misses, first aid cases and potential hazards being reported?
Are employees putting on their “Safety Hat”?
Safety included in the process
TQS Consulting, LLC

12. Are employees putting on their “Safety Hat”?
Employee Involvement
Are employees putting on their “Safety Hat”?
Employee Involvement – Are employees actively engaging the Safety process?
Do you find employees stepping up and engaging in the safety process?
Do you hear about incidents occurring and find no record of a report?
While walking through your facility do you discover damaged equipment, discharged fire extinguishers or empty eyewash stations and no incident has been reported?
Are near misses, first aid cases and potential hazards being reported?
Are employees putting on their “Safety Hat”?
TQS Consulting, LLC

13. Safety Auditing and Surveying
Perform internal auditing or employee surveys
An important tool from Management systems
OSHA Compliance should not be the primary focus
lack of compliance is a huge red flag
Focus of the audit covers not only management systems but employee involvement and feedback.
TQS Consulting, LLC

14. Leadership Involvement
What is the level of Leadership’s involvement in Safety?
The latest trends of management systems ISO 9001, is to place an emphasis on Leadership taking responsibility.
Eliminated the need for a “representative” and instead focus on Leadership throughout the organization
Gauging Leadership’s involvement can provide you with one of the best indicators of your Safety Culture.
(Safety?)
Does management:
Practice what they preach:
Attend safety meetings and complete training?
Complete safety tasks that are required of all employees? I.e., Proactive activities such as Observation cards, safety walks, etc.
Records from meetings, trainings and those leading indicators give you data that will illustrate management’s involvement.
Wear the correct PPE when required? – President of a company asking employees about not wearing safety glasses while not wearing them himself?
Future CEO who outlawed white shoes, even steel toe, because he knew if he saw white shoes then the person was not wearing the proper PPE.
Engrain Safety in the process – Is safety a true part of the manufacturing /project process or are the catch words “Safety First” used to pull up safety so that it has a fighting chance.
TQS Consulting, LLC

15. Measuring Leadership’s Safety
Do they practice what they preach?
Attend safety meetings
Complete safety training
Wear the correct PPE when required
Safety Walks
Complete Observation Cards
Ensure the organization has adequate resources to address safety
Complete safety tasks that are required of all employees?
All of these can be easily measured.
TQS Consulting, LLC

16. Practice What They Preach
Has Leadership taken the necessary steps to ensure safety is integrated into the organization’s process(s) OR, are they using the “Safety First” crutch?
Does management:
Practice what they preach:
Attend safety meetings and complete training?
Complete safety tasks that are required of all employees? I.e., Proactive activities such as Observation cards, safety walks, etc.
Records from meetings, trainings and those leading indicators give you data that will illustrate management’s involvement.
Wear the correct PPE when required? – President of a company asking employees about not wearing safety glasses while not wearing them himself?
Future CEO who outlawed white shoes, even steel toe, because he knew if he saw white shoes then the person was not wearing the proper PPE.
TQS Consulting, LLC

17. “Safety First Crutch” Process Model
Project
Management
Engineering
Quality
Safety
Manufacturing
Customer Service
Delivery
“Safety First”
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18. Plan Do Check Act What is YOUR Opinion?
What are your observations of the organization’s Safety Culture? What is your gut feeling about your organization? Though not necessarily measurable, this is sometimes your best way to gauge your organization’s Safety Culture.
TQS Consulting, LLC

19. For additional information:
Timothy Grebe
TQS Consulting, LLC
(936)