Do it right and a safety reward program adds value. Do it wrong and more than your next bonus may be at stake.
Eugene Spina is a fixer by nature. Something needs work, and he’s right in there with his sleeves rolled up.
When he was hired four years ago as human resources manager for Masonite International Corporation’s Premdor Entry Systems (Steelwood Division), a door manufacturer that employs 80 people in Woodbridge, Ont., Spina began to upgrade the plant’s health and safety program. Within two years, he and the company had fine-tuned the existing components into a model program: the management team supported objectives; policies and procedures were updated and formalized; a hazard identification and control process was in place; and employee training was ongoing.
Despite Spina’s efforts, Steelwood’s lost-time injury rate wasn’t improving at the rate he expected. Spina decided to add one more component — a reward program for improved health and safety performance. Today, Steelwood is close to achieving one full year without a lost-time injury.
I like this story for several reasons. First, there’s virtue rewarded; the company’s perseverance paid off. Second, it demonstrates the hallmarks of a successful reward program. Third, and most importantly, workers who might otherwise have experienced painful and possibly debilitating injuries remain safe, healthy and productive.
But let’s go back to the second reason, the successful reward program. It’s a contentious issue. For every study that says it works, another says it doesn’t. Worse, some professionals believe reward programs can actually undermine safety efforts.
That’s a serious risk. However, the potential benefits of safety reward programs deserve consideration. Proponents believe effective, well-managed programs can help to:
•increase worker, supervisor and management awareness of safety;
•encourage compliance with health and safety laws;
•boost efficiency; and
•improve performance and productivity.
Achieving the desired benefits of any program depends on careful planning and preparation. Below are factors that contribute to the success of reward programs such as Steelwood’s.
•Get senior management onside. Committed management does more than sign off on a proposal and glad-hand recipients at reward ceremonies. Truly committed management leads with a top-down approach to all aspects of injury and illness prevention. At strategic and tactical levels, management provides visible program support, serves as a role model, and puts safety on par with production.
•Have a comprehensive health and safety program in place. Reward programs are not a fix-all. As a free-standing effort, they may temporarily perk up health and safety performance, but do little to address the root cause of injuries and illness. When designing a reward program, integrate it into other health and safety efforts (for examples, see next factor “Set measurable goals”). Integration creates continuity and helps participants understand and support the reward program’s ultimate goal — greater health and safety awareness and performance.
•Set measurable goals. Effective goals reinforce safe behaviour. For example, build part of the reward program on legal compliance, and reward a team or department for passing an impromptu inspection. Then track these inspection results to help determine overall program success. Depending on the nature of the work performed and its hazards, inspections might target one or more of the following:
•Housekeeping: Are floors and aisles clear of obstructions? Have spills been cleaned up promptly? Are items shelved securely, so that they don’t topple into aisles?
•Machine guarding: Are all pinchpoints guarded? Are all guards in place and functioning?
•Lockout/tagout practices: Can employees correctly lock out and tag out machinery so that maintenance and repair work can proceed safely?
•Employee familiarity with specific safety policies and procedures, such as hazard reporting, spill cleanup, emergency response.
Beware of reward programs based solely on lost-time injury reductions. Such measures can discourage employees from reporting injuries for fear of attracting blame. Steelwood rewards employees for achieving lost-time injury milestones, but the company’s efforts succeed for three reasons. First, the health and safety program already provides a systematic approach to hazard identification, assessment and control. Second, the company offers a similar reward for other company milestones, such as exceeding production targets. Using the same reward for safety and production sends a message that management values both equally. Third, and most pragmatically, the company is a small employer. It’s hard to hide a lost-time injury in that environment.
•Reinforce safe behaviour. Support the reward program with safety training, skills building, counselling and leadership. Turn weaknesses into opportunities. If machine guards are missing or compromised, then identify the process or system issues that caused the guarding failure and develop an action plan to reinforce the desired result.
•Keep it simple. From reward eligibility to program administration, the more complicated it is, the less fun for everyone.
•Talk it up. Communicate program rationale, features, benefits and successes to everyone, often. Use presentations, posters, newsletters, bulletin boards, e-mail, payroll inserts. Get the program onto the agenda of management meetings, joint health and safety committee meetings and any other meeting with even a remote connection to safety. Awareness and integration are essential.
•Involve everyone. Seek input during the development, implementation, evaluation and improvement stages. Extend eligibility to all levels of the organization. You may have to tailor the criteria and the reward to specific groups, but the objective remains the same.
•Integrate rewards into overall facility management. Build safety awareness into the employee performance management system. “Commitment to health, safety, wellness and the environment” can be a competency assigned to every staff position. As part of employee performance appraisals, measure how an employee:
•demonstrates and understands health and safety practices;
•promotes and encourages safe practices at home and in the community, and
•participates in wellness initiatives.
•Place the reward within reach. If it’s perceived as unattainable, it could foster cynicism and resentment instead of enthusiasm and healthy competition.
•Maximize the reward’s value. Whatever the prize, keep it in line with objectives and with other corporate reward programs and values. For instance, money offers little lasting reinforcement. Conversely, something that an employee’s family can enjoy extends the message beyond the workplace.
•Look elsewhere for rewards. Check with industry and safety associations on reward programs offered to member firms. Outside recognition can help reinforce your safety message, and instil pride in your workforce.
Prevention excellence begins with a properly integrated health and safety management system. Reward programs are for rewarding and reinforcing safe behaviour. There are experts who praise, as well as those who vilify, safety reward programs. My belief is that it’s better to do something than nothing, especially if you take all possible precautions, and create a program that reinforces broader health and safety objectives. Everyone can benefit from a little encouragement.
Maureen Shaw is president and CEO of the Industrial Accident Prevention Association. IAPA’s mission is to improve the quality of life in workplaces and communities by providing effective programs, products and services for the prevention of injury and illness. For more information visit www.iapa.on.ca.
When he was hired four years ago as human resources manager for Masonite International Corporation’s Premdor Entry Systems (Steelwood Division), a door manufacturer that employs 80 people in Woodbridge, Ont., Spina began to upgrade the plant’s health and safety program. Within two years, he and the company had fine-tuned the existing components into a model program: the management team supported objectives; policies and procedures were updated and formalized; a hazard identification and control process was in place; and employee training was ongoing.
Despite Spina’s efforts, Steelwood’s lost-time injury rate wasn’t improving at the rate he expected. Spina decided to add one more component — a reward program for improved health and safety performance. Today, Steelwood is close to achieving one full year without a lost-time injury.
I like this story for several reasons. First, there’s virtue rewarded; the company’s perseverance paid off. Second, it demonstrates the hallmarks of a successful reward program. Third, and most importantly, workers who might otherwise have experienced painful and possibly debilitating injuries remain safe, healthy and productive.
But let’s go back to the second reason, the successful reward program. It’s a contentious issue. For every study that says it works, another says it doesn’t. Worse, some professionals believe reward programs can actually undermine safety efforts.
That’s a serious risk. However, the potential benefits of safety reward programs deserve consideration. Proponents believe effective, well-managed programs can help to:
•increase worker, supervisor and management awareness of safety;
•encourage compliance with health and safety laws;
•boost efficiency; and
•improve performance and productivity.
Achieving the desired benefits of any program depends on careful planning and preparation. Below are factors that contribute to the success of reward programs such as Steelwood’s.
•Get senior management onside. Committed management does more than sign off on a proposal and glad-hand recipients at reward ceremonies. Truly committed management leads with a top-down approach to all aspects of injury and illness prevention. At strategic and tactical levels, management provides visible program support, serves as a role model, and puts safety on par with production.
•Have a comprehensive health and safety program in place. Reward programs are not a fix-all. As a free-standing effort, they may temporarily perk up health and safety performance, but do little to address the root cause of injuries and illness. When designing a reward program, integrate it into other health and safety efforts (for examples, see next factor “Set measurable goals”). Integration creates continuity and helps participants understand and support the reward program’s ultimate goal — greater health and safety awareness and performance.
•Set measurable goals. Effective goals reinforce safe behaviour. For example, build part of the reward program on legal compliance, and reward a team or department for passing an impromptu inspection. Then track these inspection results to help determine overall program success. Depending on the nature of the work performed and its hazards, inspections might target one or more of the following:
•Housekeeping: Are floors and aisles clear of obstructions? Have spills been cleaned up promptly? Are items shelved securely, so that they don’t topple into aisles?
•Machine guarding: Are all pinchpoints guarded? Are all guards in place and functioning?
•Lockout/tagout practices: Can employees correctly lock out and tag out machinery so that maintenance and repair work can proceed safely?
•Employee familiarity with specific safety policies and procedures, such as hazard reporting, spill cleanup, emergency response.
Beware of reward programs based solely on lost-time injury reductions. Such measures can discourage employees from reporting injuries for fear of attracting blame. Steelwood rewards employees for achieving lost-time injury milestones, but the company’s efforts succeed for three reasons. First, the health and safety program already provides a systematic approach to hazard identification, assessment and control. Second, the company offers a similar reward for other company milestones, such as exceeding production targets. Using the same reward for safety and production sends a message that management values both equally. Third, and most pragmatically, the company is a small employer. It’s hard to hide a lost-time injury in that environment.
•Reinforce safe behaviour. Support the reward program with safety training, skills building, counselling and leadership. Turn weaknesses into opportunities. If machine guards are missing or compromised, then identify the process or system issues that caused the guarding failure and develop an action plan to reinforce the desired result.
•Keep it simple. From reward eligibility to program administration, the more complicated it is, the less fun for everyone.
•Talk it up. Communicate program rationale, features, benefits and successes to everyone, often. Use presentations, posters, newsletters, bulletin boards, e-mail, payroll inserts. Get the program onto the agenda of management meetings, joint health and safety committee meetings and any other meeting with even a remote connection to safety. Awareness and integration are essential.
•Involve everyone. Seek input during the development, implementation, evaluation and improvement stages. Extend eligibility to all levels of the organization. You may have to tailor the criteria and the reward to specific groups, but the objective remains the same.
•Integrate rewards into overall facility management. Build safety awareness into the employee performance management system. “Commitment to health, safety, wellness and the environment” can be a competency assigned to every staff position. As part of employee performance appraisals, measure how an employee:
•demonstrates and understands health and safety practices;
•promotes and encourages safe practices at home and in the community, and
•participates in wellness initiatives.
•Place the reward within reach. If it’s perceived as unattainable, it could foster cynicism and resentment instead of enthusiasm and healthy competition.
•Maximize the reward’s value. Whatever the prize, keep it in line with objectives and with other corporate reward programs and values. For instance, money offers little lasting reinforcement. Conversely, something that an employee’s family can enjoy extends the message beyond the workplace.
•Look elsewhere for rewards. Check with industry and safety associations on reward programs offered to member firms. Outside recognition can help reinforce your safety message, and instil pride in your workforce.
Prevention excellence begins with a properly integrated health and safety management system. Reward programs are for rewarding and reinforcing safe behaviour. There are experts who praise, as well as those who vilify, safety reward programs. My belief is that it’s better to do something than nothing, especially if you take all possible precautions, and create a program that reinforces broader health and safety objectives. Everyone can benefit from a little encouragement.
Maureen Shaw is president and CEO of the Industrial Accident Prevention Association. IAPA’s mission is to improve the quality of life in workplaces and communities by providing effective programs, products and services for the prevention of injury and illness. For more information visit www.iapa.on.ca.
