Safety without borders
Communication has become a catch cry for both the safety profession and regulators, yet it seems that significant barriers exist from multiple stakeholders to prevent or discourage real communication....
View ArticleDon’t walk the talk
Safety does not exist. At least not in itself. There are no ‘from above’ given signs that inform us what safety is, how it works, where the boundaries are or will be, or how safety should optimally be...
View ArticleTwo sides to every control
I have been reading a thought-provoking book, Adapt (Why success always starts with failure) by Tim Harford. While it isn’t a book on safety there is much to learn from Tim. He argues that today’s...
View ArticleYou can have your cake and eat it
Safety is Our Number One Priority! Do they think we are stupid or what? Such a company slogan is one of the most illogical and naively transparent statements to make. If not hurting people in the...
View ArticleStep toward collaboration
Last year I attended a safety conference. The content was traditional: a heart wrenching accident story, a government representative showing statistics and explaining accident reduction goals, legal...
View ArticleNeed(le) for change
In my spare time I like to make things. I mostly sew clothes, bags and toys using secondhand fabrics. I find inspiration from old tablecloths, vintage sheets, dresses no longer worn. I also find...
View ArticleHumans – The strongest link
The typical focus in safety is that the human being is our weakest link in safety. But they are indeed the strongest: naturally equipped to deal with risks dynamically, and with incredible risk skills…...
View ArticleCan you handle the truth?
Safety today has arrived at a place where we can’t handle to truth, we are not interested in the science, nor are we informed by evidence. We have become religious zealots. Anyone that challenges the...
View ArticleLessons from the UK’s Peak District
Question – What have limestone quarries in the UK’s Yorkshire and Derbyshire, and Health & Safety got in common? Answer – Apart from silicosis (which has now been addressed by wet cutting...
View ArticleThe evil of roots
Transportation officials said Wednesday that the driver of the Green Line train that crashed into another trolley docked at the Boylston Street Station last week was “solely responsible” for the...
View ArticleLaughed ’till my head fell off
When you think about it, safety is a serious business. Whether it is about preventing injuries or supporting successful outcomes, no matter how you look at it, no one wants people to get hurt. But I...
View ArticleWhat about idiots?
In early 2013 a group of Australian miners choreographed and performed their rendition of the ‘Harlem Shake’, a music video that has stimulated 100s of similar dances to be uploaded to YouTube. Deep...
View ArticleThe blue pill or the red pill
When the movie ‘The Matrix’ was released in 1999 I was blown away by not only the plot, but also the visual effects. I associated with the film, its story, and ultimately – that there is no spoon. I’m...
View ArticleDon’t shoot the messenger
“The sole objective of the investigation of an accident or incident shall be the prevention of accidents and incidents. It is not the purpose of this activity to apportion blame or liability.” Annex 13...
View ArticleHistory of Health and Safety
Do we really understand where we are in health and safety? There is a not so famous Churchillian quote that “A nation that does not understand its history has no future”. Winston Churchill was first...
View ArticleAccountability up, or responsibility down?
A few years ago, I learnt of a woman who was slightly injured at work. She told her supervisor, showed the injury, and went to see the doctor that same afternoon. While in the waiting room, she got a...
View ArticleCan safety renew itself?
Is the safety profession uniquely incapable of renewing itself? For a profession that is organized around the elimination, reduction and control of risk, innovation can be a tall order. Innovation...
View ArticleFrom the road less travelled
-Analysis showed that 82-94% of our accidents and incidents were caused by ‘unsafe acts’. So the question was ‘how can we get our workers more motivated to do the right thing?’ Phil Stephenson, the...
View ArticleTinker, Taylor…
The old English nursery rhyme “Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Sailor” was adapted as title for John LeCarre’s 1974 spy novel. Its main character, George Smiley, first fired, then reinstated, is the Beggar...
View ArticleA kitchen safety fable
Once upon a time researchers found that many injuries in the home were due to kettles being left to boil dry. Analysis of the accidents, that often lead to burns and fires, revealed that there were...
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