Measurement is a key step in any safety management process and forms the basis for continuous improvement.
If measurement is not managed correctly, the effectiveness of the safety process is undermined and there is no reliable information to inform managers how well they are performing in Safety. Just like cost, quality, and production, businesses need to measure their safety performance to find out if TRUE SUCCESS is being ACHIEVED. As organizations recognize the importance of managing health and safety they become aware of the problems with using injury and ill-health statistics alone as the only measure of health and safety performance. In today’s management climate, when managing directors or CEOs are asked how they measured their companies’ performance, many would probably mention measures like percentage profit, return on investment or market share. A common feature of the measures quoted would be that they are generally positive in nature – reflecting achievement – rather than negative, reflecting failure. Most often, when the same people are asked how they measured their companies’ safety performance, most likely the only measure quoted would be the OSHA rate. While the general business performance of an organization is subject to a range of positive measures, safety often comes down to one negative measure, OSHA rate – measures of failures.
Health and safety differs from many areas measured by managers because success results in the absence of an outcome (injuries or ill health) rather than a presence. But a low injury rate, even over a period of years, is no guarantee that injuries are being prevented and will not lead to injuries in the future. This is particularly true in organizations where there is a low probability of accidents but where major hazards are present. Here the historical record can be a deceptive indicator of safety performance. Organizations need to recognize that there is no single reliable measure of health and safety performance. What is required is a ‘basket’ of measures or a ‘balanced scorecard’, providing information on a range of health and safety activities. Some problems with ONLY using injury statistics for your safety measurements:
1.) Under reporting – an emphasis on injury and ill-health rates as a measure, particularly when related to reward systems, can lead to such events not being reported so as to ‘maintain’ performance.
2.) Whether a particular event results in an injury is often a matter of chance, so it will not necessarily reflect whether or not a hazard is under control. An organization can have a low injury rate because of luck or fewer people exposed, rather than good health and safety management.
3.) Injury rates often do not reflect the potential severity of an event, merely the consequence. For example, the same failing to adequately guard a machine could result in a cut finger or an amputation.
4.) People can stay off work for reasons, which do not reflect the severity of the event.
5.) A low injury rate can lead to complacency.
6.) A low injury rate results in few data points being available.
7.) There must be a failure, (i.e., injury or ill health), in order to get a data point.
8.) Injury statistics reflect outcomes not causes.
Because of the flaws associated with the use of injury data alone as a means of measuring performance, some organizations have recognized they need more proactive or ‘up stream’ measures of performance. Generally this is translated into a search for things that can be easily counted, such as numbers of training courses or numbers of inspections. What is usually absent is a systematic approach to deriving these measures and how they link to the reduction in injuries.
The scattergun or random approach, based purely on what is easiest to measure or what is already being done, is of limited value. The resultant data provides little or no information on how the figure was arrived at, whether it is ‘acceptable’ (ie good/bad) or the quality and effectiveness of the activity. A more disciplined approach to safety performance measurement is required. This needs to develop as the health and safety management system develops. It is important not only to ensure that the measurement system is effective but also to ensure effective use of the resources used to measure performance.
As a Safety Professional leading the Safety Process you need to know:
1.) where you are
2.) where you want to be
3.) what is the difference – and why.
In order to answer these questions you need to have in place a safety process that is SMART!
Specific; Measurable; Attainable; Realistic and Time bound
Ask yourself:
1.) Do you know how well you perform in health and safety?
2.) How do you know if you are meeting your own objectives and standards for health and safety?
3.) Are your controls for risks good enough?
4.) How do you know you are complying with the health and safety laws that affect your business?
5.) Do your accident investigations get to all the underlying causes – or do they stop when you find the first person who has made a mistake?
6.) Do you have accurate records of injuries?