June – National Safety Month
How to Make Sure Safety is Important Every Day
Culture Counts
If your workplace (or home) revolves around catching someone doing things “wrong” and issuing consequences, then safety isn’t actually part of your culture. Not getting caught is the key concern. A “gotcha” culture encourages staff to take an easy way out on the days no one seems to be looking. This is counterintuitive to the safety goals we strive for.
Building a Culture of Safety means discussing it every day and never assuming your staff knows all the best practices. Create a level playing field where all employees are empowered to question safety precautions. See someone not wearing their safety gear? Say something!
Safety – Every Day for Everyone
Each of our job sites have customized safety plans shared with all personnel on-site. We discuss safety concerns like slips, trips, and falls, as falling from a height is a common cause of injury and death in roofing. Our teams are building awareness around the dangers, effects, and warning signs of heat illness. To complement our daily safety checks, we have weekly safety circle talks with rotating topics pertinent to the current weather or worksite.
As a team leader, if you’re noticing Crew behavior trends toward lackadaisical nonchalance, safety topic presentations given by the Crew can help. But nothing replaces the power of genuinely caring for your fellow coworkers. We want to see our coworkers travel home safely each night, and know their families appreciate us looking out for each other.
Your Choices Matter
- Are you getting enough sleep? Fatigue behind the wheel or in the workplace is a hazard to yourself and others.
- Are you staying hydrated, limiting caffeine and alcohol intake?
- Do you seek self-care and mental health wellness? Stress is a dangerous distraction.
Build Community with your coworkers
Showing you care and knowing others care about you is the most effective way to increase workplace safety, and it leads to safer and healthier choices during personal time too. We value you as a friend and coworker, and we want you to be well.
You can believe our tough exterior as construction workers; we’re tough enough to talk about mental health and ask for help when it’s needed. We hope whole-person wellness is a part of your safety culture too.
