Research by the HSE defines an organisation’s safety culture as “the product of individual and group values, attitudes, perceptions, competencies, and patterns of behaviour that determine the commitment to, and the style and proficiency of, an organizations health and safety management”. This is a long-winded way of saying your safety culture is the way things are done in your workplace, where safety is concerned.
If you want to change or enhance your company’s safety culture it can take some time and considerable effort. You need to find ways to alter attitudes and challenge organisational norms. Here are some ways to build a safety culture in your company:
Commit and Communicate
Showing your commitment will encourage employees towards the new shift in culture too. Create achievable goals and celebrate small wins along the way. Incentivise safety-first thinking too. Take time to show the team when their efforts are bringing in positive results. Communicating your new ethos is essential to getting people on board. It is easy to make health and safety boring and bureaucratic. However, it can be something collaborative and empowering. Provide real-life examples of the impact of poor safety controls and give your employees the tools to improve and act in a more safety-focused way.
Invest in Training
If you want your employees to have a good understanding of health and safety, you need to give them the tools to succeed. Investing in health and safety training is essential for all business owners. Effective health and training courses will give your employees the theoretical understanding of your procedures and policies. Similarly, many training courses have practical and real-life elements that help you to provide employees with the working knowledge necessary for many aspects of their job.
Get your Employees Involved
Building a safety culture in your business starts at the top. However, it also involves those at ground level. Building strong employee buy-ins is essential if you want your safety programme to work. You should get feedback from employees about your business’ safety programmes and ask what they think would make a positive difference.
An effective safety culture drives successful businesses. Putting health and safety at the heart of your business operations ensures a great working environment and peace of mind should a health and safety inspection come around. Risk Safety Services can help improve your business’ health and safety.
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