Globally, the construction industry is recognized as one of the most hazardous work environments. You may have the best jobsite safety program in the world, but without the commitment of your workers, it’s little more than words on paper—and words alone can do little to prevent accidents and injuries. Consider the following simple ways to improve your team’s safety attitude today.
Talk about safety every day. The more you reiterate the importance of safety and encourage your team—from entry-level workers to management—to discuss it, the more invested they will become in keeping your jobsite safe. You might do this by starting the workday with a brief safety review meeting or quizzing your workers on safety issues as you tour the jobsite.
Encourage safety suggestions. No one knows the jobsite better than the workers who spend their days there. Encourage them to report potential issues and recommend ways to make their jobs—and the jobsite—safer. You might do this by creating a reward program for workers who proactively implement improvements or eliminate safety risks.
Take safety actions promptly. You want your employees to care about safety, so show them it’s your top priority as well. Whenever they notify you about hazards, act promptly to correct the issue. This goes for minor safety problems as well as larger, more dangerous ones. Never ignore their reports, even if remedying the situation will put you behind schedule or otherwise disrupt work on the jobsite.
Invest in safety training. Sure, training new construction workers on jobsite safety—and periodically re-training old ones—takes time that could be spent on actual work. However, well-trained employees are more than worth it: they’ll have good safety attitudes, make safety a priority, and ultimately help you avoid expensive jobsite accidents and injuries.
Reward safe workers. While you should always be on the lookout for workers who are violating jobsite safety rules, it’s equally important to catch them in the act of following the program. Praise safe performance of duties frequently and loudly. Make safety a key component of annual performance appraisals, and consider tying jobsite safety compliance into raise and promotion decisions.
Set a positive example. Make sure your jobsite managers always set positive safety examples—both in actions and attitudes—for the rest of your workers. Workers will emulate the behavior of their supervisors, safe or otherwise.
The success of your construction company depends directly on the attitudes of your employees towards their own safety and that of their coworkers. We hope these suggestions help you make meaningful improvements in that regard. Please don’t hesitate to contact us for a jobsite safety program review or additional assistance.
