Health and Safety Compliance in the Workplace
August 30, 2017How to instore a Safety Culture in Employees
December 11, 2017How is an employee supposed to know what, if anything, he needs to change?
A more efficient approach may be to provide incentives based on defined behaviours. Motivating, recognizing and rewarding those behaviours will likely yield desired safety results.
There are various motivational influences in the workplace that can have dramatic effects on an employee’s behavior and may ultimately determine whether an employee works in a safe or unsafe manner. Most employees desire acceptance, self-respect and recognition. If these needs have not been met, an employee’s primary focus might be on meeting these requirements first; working safely will be secondary.
Safety is not only for compliance but to help assist employers to keep their employees, save on training, compensation and workers can go back to their families, lead a healthy life without the worry of what might happen should. Not everything is about money even thou it makes the world goes around but more about life and long-life learning.
Many employers implement safety incentive programs as they seek to recognize and reward employees for practicing safe and healthful work practices. While incentives are popular, they aren’t always effective. Simply rewarding employees to “work safely” or to “not get injured” doesn’t address the actual cause of injuries.
Are employees certain they will be recognized for safety performance?
Be sure to consistently enforce policies and procedures and to reward and recognize in line with established incentive program guidelines. If an employee feels like he can “get away with” things because no one will notice, he may also feel like his safe behaviors or participation will be unnoticed and not ultimately rewarded.
Is it the tangible reward, itself, or the underlying meaning which motivates your employees the most?
If they’re like most others, a sincere “thanks” offers an intrinsic reward which results in real motivation to continue the behavior. It makes us feel that we are part of something bigger than ourselves.
This will also assist the company with their rating, zero injuries and be able to focus on other sufficient things like productivity, hook new investors, save on training (employee replacement) and remember employer: increase awareness of safety issues in the organisation so that a culture of improved safety and security is encouraged.
Written by Mahlodi Magane
Websource: Incentives: Is Behavior the Key to an Effective Program