As the debate in OSH regarding metrics and lagging indicators rages on, there is one aspect to their use that far too many overlook. If your organization is setting goals using lagging indicators, it should at least be using them correctly. This means that BOTH FREQUENCY and SEVERITY need to be measured. I am sure most of us have seen the weakness in measuring the overall injury/illness rate and NOT measuring the severity of the injuries.
I have seen far too many organizations have an injury rate in the top 5% of their industry and yet have multiple fatal events and multiple life-altering injury events, only to celebrate the injury rate at the end of the year AND reward management for this. As I have discussed before, using the SIF model will aid in moving from this asinine approach to managing OSH in high-risk workplaces; however, getting management to consider making this shift in metrics is like getting a heroin addict sober! But there is a sound approach to this model…
