At the request of a reader, here's a reprint of a column I published a few years ago.

No, your Momma doesn't work here, but if she did I am sure that you would behave differently.

What is it about being an adult that makes us behave or have an attitude that would upset us if our kids did the same thing? We engage in risky behavior by taking a shortcut such as not using a face shield, not testing a circuit for energy or failing to use fall protection. If our kids or family member did the same thing, we would act aggressively to ensure that they followed safe practices, wouldn't we?

Every day we make a choice about safety. It's really quite simple: we either choose to behave safely or not. When an injury occurs in the workplace, we say, "Oh, how sad." Yep, it's sad alright! Rarely a week goes by when I don't talk to a safety professional or an operations manager who tells me about a fatality. Every year, thousands of workers are killed in on-the-job accidents. These accidents were preventable. Recently, a client called me to tell me about an electrical contact fatality. We discussed how sad it was because this shouldn't have happened. This individual dies with a pair of high-voltage gloves hanging on his belt! How sad! How sad for his family, his friends, and his co-workers.

If your Momma worked with you, she would make sure you did the right thing or else! The problem is: your Momma isn't here to watch out for you. It's time to get some character! Character is what you do when nobody is watching. It means that, since it has been proven that more people are saved by wearing their seat belts while operating equipment, you do it. Even when your boss or safety inspector is not at the job, you are doing the job safely without shortcuts. When someone tells you to get the job done "no matter what", you don't interpret it as, "take a safety shortcut". Being a safe, mature adult means following safe work procedures when nobody is looking so you can go home every day without injury to your family and friends.

Endnote: This article was originally published August 2005 in an SPI/SHARPS Inc publication.

SAFETY WORKBOOK HELPS YOU MEET OSHA COMPLIANCE TRAINING

Consider purchasing 52 Weeks of Safety Workbook for each of your team members. This will meet some OSHA compliance training for just pennies per week per employee.

This workbook was designed to be used as a tool to teach employees about safety in an easy-to-read-and-understand format. Each week provides discussions about:

• Employee Responsibility
• Ladder Safety
• Housekeeping
• Walking and Working Surfaces
• and more.

Employees sign and date their copy of the book, and each week their supervisor leads them through a short, tightly focused discussion on current OSHA regulations. (Discussions are generally 12 1/2 minutes or so.) If your employees complete just 48 of these 52 discussions, they will have met the minimum 10-hour requirement of an OSHA 10-hour outreach program.

To view Carl's video about 52 Weeks of Safety Workbook:
Visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAhOgGEL56Y
If you know anyone who works in a company that needs to provide OSHA training for its employees, please pass this link on to them.

For more information, visit http://carlpotter.com/ecom/index.cfm?cat=29
The workbook is available at www.safetybooks.com and at www.carlpotter.com. Purchasing information for multiple copies is available.

For more information about Hazard Recognition and Control Workshops, visit www.hazardrecognitionworkshop.com.

© 2010 Potter and Associates International.
Carl Potter, CSP, CMC and Deb Potter, PhD, CMC work with organizations that want to create an environment where nobody gets hurt. As advocates of a zero-injury workplace, they are speakers, authors, and consultants to industry. As a general aviation pilot, Carl enjoys infusing aviation safety principles into his workplace programs. For information about bringing Carl and Deb to your company or your next conference, contact them at Potter and Associates International, Inc. 800.259.6209 or check out www.safetybookscom.

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