FMJ Facilities Management magazine providing industry-specific intelligence to FM and property professionals
THE HEALTH & SAFETY TRAINER’S VIEW
KATE GARDNER,
TUTOR & H&S CONSULTANT FOR INTERNATIONAL WORKPLACE
Facilities managers with health and safety responsibilities play a crucial role in not only ensuring compliance with regulations, but also fostering a culture where employees take personal ownership of workplace safety. While compliance-based safety focuses on meeting legal standards, behavioural safety taps into the everyday actions and decisions that contribute to a safer workplace.
When I’m delivering safety training, I will often pose the question – are you an enforcer or an influencer? For many, the answer is, “I think I’m an influencer, but I often find myself having to be an enforcer”. This often then leads into a discussion about general attitudes and behaviours, and how perceptions of hazards and risks impact on behaviours. So how can we start to make a difference in the way that safety is perceived in our workplaces?
One way is to model the behaviours that we expect to see: Consistently follow safety protocols and engage in safe practices to set the standards that you want everyone to follow.
Empower through involvement by getting the wider team involved with hazard reporting, risk assessment reviews and safety inspections.
Demonstrate that good safety is “just what we do around here and not an afterthought”.
Involve everyone to encourage a culture where employees feel comfortable speaking up about safety concerns without fear of blame.
Encourage questions about health and safety and then address issues and concerns swiftly to help promote personal responsibility.
Whether the intervention is with a colleague or a contractor, try to use a coaching approach, rather than jumping straight in and criticising; people always respond better when they don’t feel as though they are being attacked. Behavioural safety focuses on the psychology of safe behaviours. Training and coaching will help everyone recognise risky behaviours in themselves and others, understand the consequences of unsafe actions and make conscious choices to act safely.
Traditional Toolbox talks and safety briefings have long been used as ways to have regular conversations about key topics, but the team doing the delivery needs to have some training to help them engage with the audience. One solution could be to use digital, microlearning resources to deliver knowledge. These bitesize digital tools bring health and safety training to workers who need key information at their fingertips and in their pockets. With mobile access to hundreds of bitesize learning resources, teams can update their knowledge quickly and it’s great for worker engagement. It also promotes safety culture across the organisation, as the expectation is to use these resources as both an ongoing personal development tool and at point of use.
Facilities managers are in a unique position to shape the safety culture of their workplace. By moving beyond checklists and engaging employees in meaningful ways, they can turn compliance into commitment. When workers understand that safety isn’t just a rulebook but a shared responsibility, the result is a more proactive, resilient and secure work environment.
