The costs incurred when employees are injured on the job are difficult for any business to handle. Not surprisingly, there has been considerable study and universal acceptance of the notion that preventing injuries is worth expending resources to accomplish. One would think that something as reasonable as a wearing safety vests would be a simple thing to introduce to the workforce, but that is not always so.
A big misconception is that those professionals charged with preventing mishaps are responsible for making the workplace safe, meaning devoid of the possibility of damage, injury or death. In reality their responsibility is to manage risk, and the way they do that is to identify those risks and develop recommended strategies for mitigation. These they organize and present to leadership for a decision.
An additional problem for leadership is that people, in general, have an enduring sense that they are immune from most common injuries. The natural learning process for people from childhood on is based largely on trial and error. With all the cuts scrapes and bruises incurred during development, the notion that one may get injured, but will recover without problem is well ingrained, and diminishes the need for overt caution.
In addition, people have come to expect thrilling or dangerous situations to be a part of their entertainment experiences. It is the reason that the more dangerous a ride sounds, the more popular it becomes, and marketing agencies are fully engaged in promoting such excitement. Sound bites exuding the speed, height and gravity defying characteristics of a new ride spell dollars to any theme park.
This may be the result of the same feelings elicited by the natural fight or flight syndrome are found in the natural sense of excitement. This is combined with a lifetime of learning that even though things may happen to us such as broken bones, scrapes and cuts, we still survive. Further, theme parks, swimming areas and vehicles all have safety measures designed in, so the level of danger is reduced for our daily activities.
Humans are also not completely immune from the biological tendency to demonstrate strength and courage in order to impress the opposite sex. Certainly humans do not all engage in near fatal contests of strength to woo their mates, yet similar trends are existent. The urge to demonstrate a sort of macho strength continues throughout life, the cautious are not always applauded.
All of these flaws combine in a workforce to make it more difficult to remove the risk of injury from the employment environment. In addition to the difficulty in maintaining control over often dangerous environments, the professional also has to address the intentional resistance of employees. IN a few instances personal protective gear has won widespread acceptance, but that is the exception.
In reality, nearly every piece of protective equipment has faced a steep uphill climb for acceptance, almost all are universally eschewed when introduced. The challenge is to devise equipment that is not burdensome and does not make the user appear somehow cowardly. It is a shame that when something as simple as a safety vest can save lives, it is so difficult to get workers to wear them consistently.
A big misconception is that those professionals charged with preventing mishaps are responsible for making the workplace safe, meaning devoid of the possibility of damage, injury or death. In reality their responsibility is to manage risk, and the way they do that is to identify those risks and develop recommended strategies for mitigation. These they organize and present to leadership for a decision.
An additional problem for leadership is that people, in general, have an enduring sense that they are immune from most common injuries. The natural learning process for people from childhood on is based largely on trial and error. With all the cuts scrapes and bruises incurred during development, the notion that one may get injured, but will recover without problem is well ingrained, and diminishes the need for overt caution.
In addition, people have come to expect thrilling or dangerous situations to be a part of their entertainment experiences. It is the reason that the more dangerous a ride sounds, the more popular it becomes, and marketing agencies are fully engaged in promoting such excitement. Sound bites exuding the speed, height and gravity defying characteristics of a new ride spell dollars to any theme park.
This may be the result of the same feelings elicited by the natural fight or flight syndrome are found in the natural sense of excitement. This is combined with a lifetime of learning that even though things may happen to us such as broken bones, scrapes and cuts, we still survive. Further, theme parks, swimming areas and vehicles all have safety measures designed in, so the level of danger is reduced for our daily activities.
Humans are also not completely immune from the biological tendency to demonstrate strength and courage in order to impress the opposite sex. Certainly humans do not all engage in near fatal contests of strength to woo their mates, yet similar trends are existent. The urge to demonstrate a sort of macho strength continues throughout life, the cautious are not always applauded.
All of these flaws combine in a workforce to make it more difficult to remove the risk of injury from the employment environment. In addition to the difficulty in maintaining control over often dangerous environments, the professional also has to address the intentional resistance of employees. IN a few instances personal protective gear has won widespread acceptance, but that is the exception.
In reality, nearly every piece of protective equipment has faced a steep uphill climb for acceptance, almost all are universally eschewed when introduced. The challenge is to devise equipment that is not burdensome and does not make the user appear somehow cowardly. It is a shame that when something as simple as a safety vest can save lives, it is so difficult to get workers to wear them consistently.
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