By Bob Lapidus, CSP (Retired), CSMS
The Three-Tier Level of Safety Management Programming provides you with a means of establishing where your organization fits in a hierarchy of safety management success. It provides you with the current status of your safety efforts and gives you actions or activities you can take to improve what you are doing.
| SAFETY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM LEVEL DEFINITIONS & ACTIVITIES | |
| PROGRAM LEVEL: GET BY | |
| DEFINITION | |
| Organizations at this level are not doing anything regarding safety or are only attempting to comply with federal, state and local government regulations. | |
| ACTIVITIES AT THIS LEVEL | |
| 1. | Management has purchased insurance for workers’ compensation or is self-insured. |
| 2. | Management reports occupational injuries and illnesses to workers’ compensation claims administrators. |
| 3. |
Management seeks to comply with at least the minimum required federal, state and local safety regulations and standards.
|
| PROGRAM LEVEL: FOUNDATIONAL | |
| DEFINITION | |
| These organizations have passed the Get By level, and are now working diligently to comply with federal, state and local government regulations and to create safety management programs that fit the fundamental structures of a safety program. | |
| ACTIVITIES AT THIS LEVEL | |
| 1. | Management knows the workers’ compensation loss impact on the financial bottom line. |
| 2. | There are active loss prevention activities (versus just paper programs). |
| 3. | There is a willingness to spend monies on safety; there is a budget for safety. |
| 4. | There is a designated accountable safety person (full- or part-time). |
| 5. | There is adequate two-way communication (dialogue) between employees and management on the subject of safety. |
| 6. | There are enough people to do the work safely. |
| 7. | Employees are given authority to take action to prevent mishaps. |
| 8. | Satisfactory safety policies, procedures, and rules are developed. |
| 9. | Employees are sufficiently trained in safety policies, procedures, and rules, and what they need to know to prevent accidents. |
| 10. | Follow-up or refresher safety training is provided on safety policies, procedures, and rules. |
| 11. | Employees have the knowledge, skills and/or judgment for each of the tasks they perform. |
| 12. | Employees know how to recognize safety problems. |
| 13. | Employees follow the established safety policies, procedures, and rules. |
| 14. | Safety policies, procedures and rules are enforced by managers and supervisors. |
| 15. | There are adequate facilities, equipment, tools and materials to do the job in a safe manner. |
| 16. | There is proper repair and maintenance of facilities and equipment to prevent safety problems. |
| 17. | Housekeeping is acceptable. |
| 18. | Employees regularly use provided facilities, equipment, and materials to prevent sustaining accidents. |
| 19. | Safety problems are regularly identified by all levels in the organization through the process of inspections, investigations and continuous monitoring. |
| 20. | Identified safety problems are properly analyzed in a timely manner. |
| 21. | Identified safety problems are promptly corrected. |
| 22. | Management seeks to comply with required federal, state and local safety regulations and standards. |
| 23. | There is aggressive workers= compensation claims management. |
| 24. |
All safety activities are properly documented.
|
| PROGRAM LEVEL: MANAGED | |
| DEFINITION | |
| Such organizations epitomize well-managed enterprises. They have gone beyond the Get By and Foundational levels to achieve strong safety management structures. Safety is integral to how the establishment is managed. | |
| ACTIVITIES AT THIS LEVEL | |
| 1. | Effective leadership is demonstrated by example and attitude on the part of managers and supervisors. In safety, this demonstration means that managers and supervisors comply with the required safety procedures. |
| 2. | Management works diligently to avoid making incorrect decisions (errors or omissions) to prevent accidents. |
| 3. | Management knows how to deal with safety-related problems. |
| 4. | Management avoids risk to enhance employee safety. |
| 5. | Management regularly analyzes tasks to ascertain if there are any unsafe practices, conditions or systems in place that could cause an accident. Such analysis is done using Job Safety Analysis or other such evaluation systems. |
| 6. | Management establishes achievable safety goals to include the elimination or reduction of occupational injuries and illnesses, the mitigation of loss exposures, and the establishment of what are unacceptable risks that must not be taken by employees. |
| 7. | Managers, supervisors and employees are involved in the creation, implementation, and maintenance of the organization=s safety programs. |
| 8. | Management evaluates the effectiveness of the organization’s various safety activities and takes action, as necessary, to improve or change them. |
| 9. | The organization=s safety goals are regularly communicated to all employees. |
| 10. | Management creates safety expectations to prevent the compromise of safety. |
| 11. | Management’s safety expectations are regularly communicated to all employees. |
| 12. | Employees know management’s safety expectations. |
| 13. | Employees follow the established safety expectations. |
| 14. | Management enforces its safety expectations. |
| 15. | Managers and supervisors understand employees’ safety needs, concerns, and problems. |
| 16. | Managers and supervisors take action on an ongoing basis to deal with employees’ safety needs, concerns, problems. |
| 17. | Management maintains a high regard for safety and encourages employees to avoid rushing to get the job done for the purpose of preventing accidents. |
| 18. | Employee safety performance is evaluated at least annually. |
| 19. | Managers’ and supervisors’ safety performance are evaluated at least annually. |
| 20. | Managers and supervisors are regularly held accountable for what they do or not do to prevent mishaps. Accountability means that positive recognition is given for taking appropriate action and correction is given for not taking appropriate action. |
| 21. | Managers and supervisors are regularly held accountable for their loss results. Accountability means that positive recognition is given for not having losses and correction is given for having losses. |
| 22. | Employees are regularly held accountable for working in a safe manner. Accountability means that positive recognition is given for working in a safe manner and correction is given for not working in a safe manner. |
| 23. | Employees are regularly held accountable for maintaining work place order. Accountability means that positive recognition is given for maintaining work place order and correction is given for not maintaining such order. |
| 24. | Management encourages employees to take the time to make correct decisions to avoid errors or omissions that could lead to accidents. |
| 25. | Management properly assigns employees who have limited capacities to reduce potential injuries. |
| 26. | Management promotes physical fitness so employees maintain themselves in good physical shape to be able to work in a safe manner. |
| 27. | Management encourages employees to avoid getting distracted from the tasks they perform so as to maintain their concentration and avoid accidents. |
| 28. | Employees are encouraged by their peer groups to work safely. |
| 29. | There is bilingual management/supervision, where appropriate. If not needed, your answer is Yes or Not Applicable (N/A). |
| 30. | As necessary, there is a management representative on premises whenever employees are working. If not an issue, your answer is Yes or Not Applicable (N/A). |
SUMMARY
GET BY LEVEL
An organization that is only at the Get By level is truly not doing much. Even 100% at this level is minimal and at most is simply being reactive because the organization is required to do so. If your organization is doing all three items, that is good, but the next question is: What else are you doing?
FOUNDATIONAL LEVEL
Organizations at the Foundational level are creating comprehensive safety programs. The more you are doing, the more successful your safety effort is going to be.
MANAGED LEVEL
It is difficult to be at this level without also having initiated many of the other activities noted in the Get By and Foundational levels. Organizations that are high on the Managed level are well-managed establishments. They are proactive and they integrate safety into their mission. They are successful in safety because they are usually successful in almost everything else they do. Safety, quality, efficiency and productivity are second nature to these organizations.
Action to Be Taken
- Identify where your organization stands within each of the three-tier levels of safety programming.
- Praise yourself and your organization for your successes. Take action to improve upon your current efforts.
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For More Information:
Go to www.safetycenter.org for more information about Safety Center’s Safety Management Specialist Certificate.
After completing this nine-day program, graduates may take the exam to achieve the Certified Safety Management Specialist (CSMS) designation. Recipients of the CSMS receive a beautiful plaque and become part of an elite group of safety specialists who have achieved this recognition. Once this certification is attained, successful candidates keep it for the rest of their lives without any additional requirements or fees.