b'Garys CornerSAFETY CULTURE AND THE ENTREPRENEUR It Starts With ManagementGary Auman, MRCA Legal CounselS afety Culture is to many an empty concept. Partwhen you are preparing the bid. To have a true safety of this feeling may be derived from a fear of theculture for your company you need to be thinking safety unknown. Many of us hear safety professionalsas you bid your work. Design safety into the bid. What is speak of developing a safety culture and we immediatelythe best fall protection I can have on this project? How think of our employees walking around in bubble wrap;much do I need to add to my bid to get this level of safety so encumbered with safety devices and practices that how much must I reduce my margin to ensure safety it is impossible for them to accomplish any work. Fearand stay competitive? How much additional time do I not! This is not what a safety culture is intended to be. Aneed to figure into my plan for completing the job? This safety culture is really just that, a culture.may sound like a daunting task, but after you have made Culture is defined in the Merriman-Websterthe commitment things will begin to fall onto place. And, Dictionary as the set of shared attitudes, values, goalsthe rewards can be tremendous.and practices that characterize and institution orBuilding a safety culture into your business will organization. This concept is applicable to both largeresult in greater efficiencies on the job. A safety culture and small roofing contractors. If the business owner iswill enhance your reputation with your customers. You serious about safety, he/she must share that seriousness with everyone who works for him. To me a safety culturethe safety culture means that safety is considered first in all that we do.A safety culture starts and ends with the businessbegins with you.owner or the company president. The owner/president is responsible for the direction and success of the company. Whether you set the tone yourself as thewill see a decrease in workers compensation claims and business owner or are responsible for hiring the expertiseother liability claims. You will no longer be looking over needed to succeed in every part of your businesstheyour shoulder because OSHA might show up. If you now buck stops with you. With the increased emphasis onavoid serious OSHA citations; you will not have problems OSHA citations, new OSHA reporting rules, higher costswith pre-quals for bids if the OSHA citation question is resulting from injuries to employees, not moving towardsasked. a safety culture in your company may be a luxury thatBut, dont forget, the safety culture begins with you you can no longer afford. and your management team. There can be no exceptions. I know that if I were to speak with each of our MRCAWhen you or anyone on the management team visits a members about maintaining a safe work environment,jobsite, you must work as safely as the crew on the job. they would each tell me that it is the most importantIf they are wearing personal fall arrest equipment on the thing to them, in running their business. Well, if that isroof, you MUST wear it also before you ascend to the the case for you, you are more than half way home inroof. If everyone is wearing hard hats, you MUST put on developing a safety culture. The first step in any safetyyour hard hat before you step on the active worksite. program/culture is management commitment. WithoutWhatever safety is being required on the site, you and management on board having a safety culture is a non- anyone you bring with you, must comply. starter. You need to hold your management team responsible First, you have to believe that making safety first in allfor safety. YOU should audit their safety performance. that you do is the way to go. Preferably this belief shouldIf this requires the use of an outside auditor, than that be anchored in a desire to provide employees a job fromis the course you need to take. Holding managers which they will return home safely at the end of the day.accountable for safety expectations should become part This can only be done with your commitment to buildof their performance review. There can be no exceptions. safety into every part of your business. In other wordsSo, where do we start? The first step is to outline your safety is not something you think about after the factsafety culture in your safety program. We will start theresafety is the FIRST thing you think about at the startin the next issue of MR.of every project and the start of every day. As a result ofOSHA Releases 2014 Top Ten Liststhis safety becomes the first thing your employees thinkAnother reason to develop and promote a safety about in everything they do, also. culture in the construction industry was just identified Safety at the start of every project does not meanbu OSHA when it released its Top 10 lists for 2014. Out of safety before employees begin work on the job; it meansthe 36,163 federal inspections conducted in 2014, 18,190 18 www.mrca.orgMidwest Roofer'