Evaluation of the level of safety culture

II.7- Some key attributes of a sound safety culture:

From the findings of Fleming (2001) in the Offshore Technology Report conducted by Robert Gorden University on behalf of the HSE, this author states that four factors appeared to have a positive effect on the safety perceptions: valuing subordinates, visiting the worksite frequently, work group participation in decision-making and effective safety communication. Reason (1997) also emphasized that an organisation needed a just culture to be able to have a good safety culture. This author says a just culture is recognized by the organisation's ability to create an atmosphere of trust and where people are encouraged and rewarded for providing essential safety-related informations.

Furthermore assuming an incident occurred because a control room operator, leaving at the end of the shift, failed to alert the oncoming operator of a serious, off-standard condition in the process. This problem might be diagnosed generally as a communications problem, with a specific root cause defined as «Communications between shifts less than adequate.» In this circumstance, another root cause related to supervisory practices, «Improper performance not corrected,» might be identified. The only thing of real importance that leaders do is to create and manage culture (Schein et al 2004). The leadership of an organization has the primary responsibility for identifying the need for safety, fostering cultural change and for sustaining a sound safety culture once it is established. If the organization feels strongly about a particular behavior, there will be little tolerance for deviation, and there will be strong societal pressures for conformance (Weick et al, 2001). Each individual in the organization has a role in reinforcing the behavioral norms.

The values of the group (e.g., corporation, plant, shift team) help shape the beliefs and attitudes of the individual, which in turn, play a significant role in determining individual behaviors. A weak safety culture likely will be evidenced by the actions and inactions of personnel at all levels of the organization. For example, the failure of a critical part in one of our machines might have been caused by the technician who failed to do preventive maintenance of the instrument and falsified the maintenance records. Alternatively, it might have been caused by the plant manager who denied the fundings requested to address staffing shortages in the instrument department. 

In a sound safety culture, an individual would be expected to intercede if they saw a coworker about to commit an unsafe act. Also under same situation, leadership would be expected to monitor the heath of the safety culture and reinforce and nurture it when required. Finally, individuals and groups would be expected to speak out if they perceived management acting in a fashion inconsistent with the organization's safety values.

Case study:

The Basic Nestlé Management and Leadership Principles' document describes the management style and the corporate values, specifically in the area of interpersonal relations. We gathered the following major elements: a prerequisite for dealing with people is respect and trust, transparency and honesty in dealing with people are a sine qua non for efficient communication complemented by open dialogue with the purpose of sharing competencies and boosting creativity. To communicate is not only to inform; it is also to listen and to engage in dialogue. The willingness to cooperate, to help others and to learn is a required basis for advancement and promotion within Nestlé. This is firmly stated in their human resources policy, a totally new policy that encompasses the guidelines that constitute a sound basis for efficient and effective human resource management. ( http://www.nestle.com/asset-library/Documents/Library/Documents/People/People-Development-Review-EN.pdf retrieved 12^th Dec 2012).

For an organization to be conformed to the OHSAS 18001:2007 requirements, it must:

1) determine the activities of the organization and how they impact the health and safety,

2) determine its' workforce,

3) determine which of these risks are intolerable,

4) establish objectives, measurable targets and programs for the reduction of these,

5) possess only unacceptable risks,

6) establish emergency preparedness programs in the event of non-conformances,

7) identify the health and safety legal requirements of the organization,

8) measure the level of compliance to legal requirements,

9) perform periodic assessments as to how well the organization conforms to its' health and safety requirements,