OK Bill, I am a safety guy.
I was the facility guy for 6 years then switched safety 4 years ago (loooong story). I have realized that it is my job to be a Pain in the ___. "Don't do that, Put these on...." So how to motivate the people in groups 2 and 3. Well first of all we have weekly tool box meetings. A little too much in my opinion, but that is what we have always done. I thought about going to every 2 week tool box meetings, but that would be too hard for everyone to remember if we have a tool box meeting this week or not. Fortunatley our management backs me in the safety area (Do a search for McWane Industries and you will see that not all management does).
One thing that I have always told people is that accidents hurt. Yes the company will get a gig on the incident rate and have some more work to do, but you are the one going home in pain, not me. No one should go home from work hurt.
A couple of things that I have done. We had 2 people get cut with a box cutter so I made up a 2 page pamphlet showing the right and the wrong was to use a box cutter. I put in pictures showing the wrong way, and the right way to use a box cutter. The last picture is the cut that one of the employees got. I will e-mail it to anyone if they want. Another thing that I did was to go over all of our past accidents. I pulled out the ones that definitely could have been prevented with better housekeeping and the more serious ones that we had. Then at one of the tool box meetings I went over it with the employees. For instance we have one maintenance guy who always tells me, no one have ever tripped over an extension cord. Well guess what, I found an accident in the past of someone tripping over an extension cord.
Like I said, I know it is my job to be a PITA, but I think the employees know that I have their best intention at heart. Like I tell them about hearing protection, sure you can put in your ear plugs not all the way so it looks like you are wearing hearing protection. However you are the one that in a couple of years going "Huh, what did you say?"
More to say, but I think this has gone on long enough.
Scott
