Occupational Safety and Health Administration, " Safety and Health Program Management Guidelines; Issuance of Voluntary Guidelines; Notice." Federal Register Vol. 54, No. 16, Jan. 26, 1989, pp. 3904-3916.

This federal register notice publishes voluntary guidelines that outline what OSHA believes to represent the contents and framework for safety and health program excellence. The guidelines stem from OSHA's experience in evaluating worksites through its state-run consultation projects and Voluntary Protection Programs. The guidelines outline a management system to identify and control hazards on a proactive basis using four major program elements; management leadership and employee involvement, worksite analysis, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration, "Managing Worker Safety and Health." Office of Cooperative Programs, in press.

A manual designed to explain OSHA's Voluntary Safety and Health Guidelines, what they mean, and how to implement each of the program elements into a program appropriate for any size worksite.

Blair, E.H., "Achieving a Total Safety Paradigm Through Authentic Caring and Quality." Professional Safety. May 1996, pp. 24-27.

Most experts agree that applying TQM to the area of occupational safety produces positive benefits. TQM is engendered via employee involvement and empowerment, and it provides a realistic vehicle for a caring environment. A caring attitude and quality involve practice of active listening, encouraging self-efficacy, removing barriers, and safety coaching. A total safety paradigm that incorporates authentic caring and quality is not achieved via complex, technical methods. Rather, the human element is the focus. This author discusses how an organization that commits to authentic caring will experience a better work atmosphere, increased productivity, and enhanced safety performance at all levels.

Bradford, D.M., Ryan, R.F., "Behind the Mirror of Safety." Professional Safety. December 1996, pp. 34-36.

Looks at 10 common safety myths including 1) Safety is zero accidents and injuries, or 2) Correcting unsafe conditions will eliminate injuries, or 3) If you create enough rules, policies, and procedures, people won't get hurt. The author suggests that there are behavioral-based perspectives which help safety professionals to replace these myths with 10 safety truths. Framing a safety program based on reality vs. myths can free the company to achieve a powerful new future.

Curtis, S.L., "Safety and Total Quality Management." Professional Safety. Jan. 1995, pp.18-20.

For years progressive companies have used TQM principals to increase workforce productivity and product quality control while reducing production costs. The author explains how TQM principals also apply to safety and loss control. He uses several examples to illustrate that accidents are unwanted variations and through the use of employee involvement, the root cause to the problems can be identified and corrected. Based on the employee involvement, realistic solutions are found while giving employees ownership into the solutions.

Dawson, L.H., "Basic OSHA-Proofing: Implementing the OSHA Safety and Health Program Management Guidelines." Professional Safety. Oct. 1995, pp. 30-35.

Explains that the "magic pill" some managers are looking for to "OSHA-Proof" their worksite exists. It is the OSHA Safety and Health Program Management Guidelines. After providing an explanation of how the major program elements (management commitment, employee involvement, worksite analysis, hazard prevention and control, and training) are good examples of management excellence, the author provides a system for measuring the strengths and weaknesses of the organizations safety culture in relation to the guidelines. Once weaknesses are identified interventions can be implemented. Using the first survey as a baseline, subsequent improvements can be measured through re-administering the survey.

Dracca, R.A. and J.M. Levin, "Knowledge and Timing - Keys to Managing Workers' Compensation Costs." Professional Safety, Dec. 1995, pp.33-36.

Explains how the timeliness in addressing a Workers' Compensation claim is a key aspect of controlling costs. The entire course of the claim is usually determined within the first 5 days following injury. Actions taken during this time period determine whether a claim that warrants only medical attention remains medical only or grows into something greater and more expensive. Cost-effective solutions and several case studies are provided.

Geller, E.S., "The Truth About Safety Incentives." Professional Safety, October, 1996, pp. 34-39.

This author feels that safety incentives do reduce injuries when used correctly. Used incorrectly, however, they can do more harm than good. To help practitioners make more informed decisions about how to use safety incentives effectively, this article reports basic principals of human motivation as they relate to using safety incentives. A discussion of the power of consequences, and seven basic guidelines to follow to establish an effective safety incentive/reward program are described.

Geller, E.S., "Behavioral Safety: Key to Achieving a Total Safety Culture." Professional Safety. July 1995, pp. 16-22.

An approach (coaching) to behavior observation and feedback is presented. The author explains how being a "safety coach" should be viewed not as a way to catch employees making errors; rather coaching should be perceived as a process designed to help employees develop safe work habits. Safety coaching is a strategy that treats safety as an achievement-oriented, not failure-oriented process that is fact-finding, not fault-finding, and proactive not reactive.

Geller, E.S., "Ten Principles for Achieving a Total Safety Culture." Professional Safety. Sept. 1994, pp. 18-24.

Defines a total safety culture (TSC) as: .".. everyone feels responsible for safety and pursues it on a daily basis; employees go beyond the call of duty to identify unsafe conditions and behaviors, and intervene to correct them. In a TSC, safe work practices are supported via rewarding feedback from peers and managers; people actively care on a continuous basis for safety. In a TSC, safety is not a priority that can be shifted depending on situational demands; rather, safety is a value linked with all other situational priorities." A process that can be used to achieve a "total safety culture" is presented.

Geller, E. Scott, "Key Processes for Continuous Safety Improvement, Behavior-Based Recognition and Celebration." Professional Safety, Oct. 1997, pp. 40-44.

Presents specific procedures for giving effective recognition to employees and receiving recognition. Discusses when celebrations should be provided and specific procedures for managing effective celebrations.

Goldberg, Allan T., "How Many Stitches are Boots Worth? The True Effect of Safety Incentive Programs." Professional Safety, Jul. 1998, pp. 37-38.

Discusses the traditional safety incentive program and the adverse effects it can have on reporting accidents. An example is presented and possible solutions are discussed. The solutions involve rewarding people for their involvement in activities that result in increase safety in the workplace as opposed to rewarding people for a decrease in accident rates. The latter can result in under-reporting of injuries.

Graham, R.E., "Return to Work, Preliminary Analysis of an Ethnographic Study." Professional Safety. January 1997, pp. 33-35.

Investigates strategies to help return an injured worker to normal productivity following a serious workplace injury. This study suggests that workers avoid tasks associated with their injuries and develop copying strategies to perform these tasks again. Injured workers also say they are more conscious of what can go wrong and will ensure that they are never involved in a similar accident.

Gregory, E. D., "Building an Environment that Promotes Safe Behavior." Professional Safety. October 1996, pp. 20-27.

Explains how to establish or correct the management system so that the work environment motivates safe behavior. Changing the work environment, not forcing employees to fit into a poorly managed system, is the focus. The author describes processes that promote safe behavior, including 1) Building a climate of involvement, 2) Measuring and providing feedback on performance, 3) Proposing safety rules in a positive manner, 4) Ensuring that consequences do not encourage unsafe behavior, 5) Demonstrating that risk-taking is unacceptable, 6) Responding promptly to safety concerns, and 7) Engineering the job to prevent unsafe behavior and to encourage safe behavior.

Hidley, J.H. and T.R. Krause, "Behavior-Based Safety: Paradigm Shift Beyond the Failures of Attitude-Based Programs." Professional Safety. Oct. 1994, pp. 28-32.

After explaining why the old (traditional) approach to safety is not particularly effective, presents a different approach based on human behavior. An explanation of what a behavior-based safety approach is and is not, is presented. A system based on defining critical "at-risk" behaviors, systematically observing those behaviors, charting the data gathered, involving employees in collecting the data and problem solving, and providing feedback is presented.

Jorgensen Jr., Ernest B., "Safety & Health Auditing: A Misunderstood Process." Professional Safety, Apr. 1998, pp. 29-31.

Discusses the procedures in performing an audit of a safety and health program and the audit report. Audit should help shift activities from reactive to proactive and concentrate on those areas where noncompliance has serious consequences. Audit should be a verification of planned arrangements with numerical measurements. Presents a table of typical audit items as presented in ANSI A10.39-1996. For cases involving critical issues of compliance, suggests it may be appropriate to institute system safety requirements similar to MIL-STD-882C (Risk Assessment).

Kozak, B., and R. Clements, "Build Safety into Your ISO 9000 Program." Professional Safety, Sept. 1995, pp. 31-32.

Explains how a proactive safety program can be integrated into any existing ISO 9000-based system of policies, procedures, and work instructions. ISO 9001 provides guidelines for applying the ISO 9000 standards. An explanation of specific safety functions that can be performed and or structured for each of the 20 ISO program requirements is provided.

Krause, Thomas R., "Safety Incentives from a Behavioral Perspective: Presenting a Balance Sheet." Professional Safety, Aug. 1998, pp. 24-28.

Discusses four factors used to evaluate safety incentive models: safety message, feedback, pride of performance, and injury reporting. Traditional incentive programs based on rates, behavior modification programs to increase participation in safety activities, and behavior-based safety using observations and feedback were all evaluated on these factors. According to the author, behavior-based safety showed the best results of these four evaluation criteria.

Krause, T.R., McCorquodale, R. J., "Transitioning Away from Safety Incentive Programs." Professional Safety. March 1996, pp. 32-36.

Some incentive programs may, in fact, impair workforce safety performance via numerous unintended negative consequences such as under-reporting injuries. The first part of this article provides some background on the traditional role of incentive programs. Next, it reviews the scientific explanation for their ineffectiveness. Finally, it details the benefits that can be achieved from transitioning away from traditional safety incentives.

LaBar, G., "Making Safety Pay." Occup. Hazards. June 1994, pp 33-36.

Reports on interviews held with safety managers from a variety of different American corporations on how they measure their impact, cost savings, and what the major motivators are for upper management. All interviewed discuss from their perspective how safety pays dividends to the companies bottom line, both in terms of direct and indirect costs.

Magyar Jr., Stephen V., "Medical Claim Management: An Effective Return-To-Work Program." Professional Safety, Dec. 1997, pp. 33-36.

Presents a return-to-work program and briefly discusses the benefits of such a program. Provides elements of medical management programs such as a fitness to work program, a light-duty program, and a prioritized job placement program based on medical abilities and restrictions.

Manuele, Fred A., "Observations of ASSE's Behavioral Safety Symposium." Professional Safety, Aug. 1998, pp. 32-37.

Presents a record of the author's observations at the Feb. 26-27, 1998, ASSE's Behavior Safety Symposium. Discusses the two approaches to behavioral safety: a culture-change model and a worker-focused behavior modification model. Presents excerpts from authors embracing the different models. Discusses the importance of behavioral safety accountability from top management on down to the bottom line workers. Worker-focused model generally requires identification of root-causal factors (antecedents) to determine behavior observations/direction. For systemic causal factors, engineering and work method revisions must be first considerations. No single behavioral-based safety approach fits all situations.

Marcombe, J.T., T.R. Krause, and R.M. Finley, "Behaviour-Based Safety at Monsanto's Pensacola Plant." The Chemical Engineer. Apr. 29 1993, pp. 15-17.

After explaining what a behavior-based safety approach is, describes how a behavior-based safety program was implemented at Monsanto's Pensacola plant. After an initial behavior analysis was performed on past accidents at the plant, it was found that 59% of all accidents fell into 1 of 4 behavior categories (checking equipment, tools, and work area before starting work; using PPE; using proper body position; and line of fire). By addressing these "critical" behaviors through training and getting buy-in from affected departments a culture change occurred. In the first 2 years the plant realized a 75% reduction in accidents. Through a continuous process improvement process the plant 10 years later has experienced a sustained decrease in reportable accidents. Currently a number of work units have a 1.5-4 year accident-free record.

McClay, C.J., "Achieving Breakthroughs in Safety Via Employee Empowerment." Professional Safety. Dec. 1995, pp. 44-47.

Explains how traditional safety has not worked very well and that it is time for change. Through empowering employees to get involved in identifying and controlling hazards, a manager can best use the resources available while getting employees, the group who has the greatest to gain from safety actively involved in changing the workplace and the organizations culture. Several success stories are provided to illustrate approaches that can be implemented.

Nestel, G. And J. DelRossi, "ISO 14000: Good Business Sense - Even for Smaller Firms." Environmental Protection, Aug. 1995, pp. 37-38.

ISO has had great success with their ISO 9000 standards, a set of internationally recognized standards for quality management. ISO 14000 standards, designed to define environmental excellence, are currently under development and, are expected to be internationally ratified in 1996. ISO 14000 consists of 6 elements, environmental management systems, environmental auditing, environmental performance systems, life cycle assessment, environmental labeling, and product standards.

Nwaelele, O.D., "Prudent Owners Take Proactive Approach." Professional Safety. April 1996, pp. 27-29.

Downsizing often encourages contractors to view safety as an unnecessary overhead cost. The author states that with true management commitment to safety, owners and contractors can implement effective construction safety programs which support the organization. An integrated project management approach minimizes liabilities while helping firms reap the benefits of reduced accidents, lower insurance premiums, improved employee morale, better quality and productivity, and increased profits.

Petersen, Dan, "Accountability, Culture & Behavior." Professional Safety, Oct. 1997, p. 45.

Achievement of excellence in safety is dependent on three ideals: establishing proper behaviors, creating the right culture, and implementing management accountability. The driving force to safety excellence is ACBE, Accountability builds Culture, which gets Behaviors resulting in Excellence.

Petersen, Dan, "What Measures should be used, and why? Measuring Safety System Effectiveness." Professional Safety, Oct. 1998, pp. 37-40.

Discusses what the literature suggests on measures for safety performance. Concludes with four recommendations: 1) Quit using accident-based measurements, 2) Use audit results only when sure correlation exists between the audit and safety results over time and large numbers, 3) Use properly constructed perception survey as primary measure and diagnostic tool, 4) Use behavior sampling and activity goals as the primary motivational measurement tool.

Simon, R.A. and S.I. Simon, "Redesigning the Safety, Health & Environmental Function for the Year 2000." Professional Safety, Mar. 1995, pp. 26-31.

Explains why it is time that most safety, health & environmental functions are in need for change, i.e., economics, community activism, workplace dynamics, customer expectations, technology, globalism. Presents a framework to systematically redesign the SH&E function using a open system model for organizational design, a four step change process, the role of organizational culture in change, case studies, and implications of systems thinking for redesigning the SH&E function.

Simon, R.A., "The Trust Factor in Safety Performance." Professional Safety, October, 1996, pp. 28-33.

Trust is a core issue for business and plays an important role in reducing accidents and overall work comp costs. This author models procedures and activities to assist the process of recovery of trust and true communication within an organization. By developing trust and communication, safety technology can be more effective. Also, when trust and communication exist within an organization, changes in procedures or work environment are more easily handled.

Smith, T.A., "What's Wrong with Safety Incentives?" Professional Safety. May 1997, p. 44.

Discusses how incentives, as a management tool, do not cause long-term improvement in safety - and may, in the short run, backfire. A number of examples of what is wrong with incentive programs is discussed. Alternatives to incentives, such as treating employees with respect and dignity, and demonstrating how much management truly cares about safety results in superior safety performance long after reward money has been spent or company jackets have worn out. This article stresses that business is moving toward a management model of greater individual freedom and decentralized control. To succeed, safety must adopt a similar approach.

Sommerkamp, J., "The Deming Approach to Construction Safety Management." Professional Safety. Dec. 1994, pp. 35-37.

Reviews some of Dr. Deming's principals and illustrates their applicability to construction safety management. Specifically he illustrates system thinking, moving toward quality, the concept of variation, the theory of knowledge and psychology.

Speir, Richard O., "Punishment in Accident Investigation." Professional Safety, Aug. 1998, pp. 29-31.

Expresses the opinion that punishment should never be inflicted as a result of an accident investigation and that accidents are symptoms of problems within an organization. Many more productive avenues exist to address accident causes.

Thomen, James R., "Root Cause: Holy Grail or Fatal Trap?" Professional Safety, Sep. 1996, pp. 31-32.

Discusses management's role in root-cause analysis and how such investigations can be enhanced. Concludes that effective changes in management behavior that support employee safety should be the true goal of injury investigations.

Topf, M.D. and R.A. Petrino "Change in Attitude Fosters Responsibility for Safety." Professional Safety. Dec. 1995, pp. 24-27.

Recommends that employees must experience attitude changes and a strong sense of personal accountability for safety in order to progress beyond traditional programs. Describes a system where operating principals, beliefs, and values are the foundation for behavior. Understanding these principals allows one to effectively implement a behavior-based safety program.

Zahlis, D.F., "Caution Beware of OSHA Statistics." Professional Safety. Dec. 1995, pp. 41-43.

Examines the misuse of injury rates/statistics and incentives. Many companies spend a great deal of manpower managing injury rates rather than root cause prevention. They frequently tie incentives and rewards around the nonoccurrence of accidents. This only promotes an environment not to report incidents. By managing unsafe behaviors, near-misses, minor incidents, etc., a proactive approach can be taken to avoid accidents before they occur rather than a reactive approach to incidences.

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