In our last blog article by Dr. Timothy Ludwig, “The Anatomy of Pencil Whipping”, the idea of safety observer quality was introduced. This article, originally published in the VPPPA Leader magazine in 2012, further expands the subject by introducing quantitative measures of observer quality that ...

An Introduction to Behavioral Safety Programs Behavioral safety observation programs are a mainstay in many safety systems that are looking to move beyond compliance and get employees involved. The idea is pretty straightforward – have employees observe other employees performing job tasks. The ...

While implementing a robust and sustainable observation program for companies, one question comes up often: “How many safety inspections should I do?” My answer, of course, is, “It depends.” As cryptic as it may sound, it is true. Safety inspection frequency will depend on several factors:

Most companies conduct periodic worksite safety audits. This process is part of the traditional landscape of a comprehensive health and safety plan. At regular intervals someone within the organization sets out to critically observe in an effort to identify and rectify hazards. Most organizations ...

Greetings, and welcome to the year 2016. In case you missed it, we have self-driving cars, performances by holographic Tupac, and a new Star Wars movie with CGI that you swear you could reach out and touch. What a time to be alive! So, I’m asking you as a friend, why are you still performing safety ...

All employees are openly encouraged to report hazards when they are discovered. In many organizations, this is a basic tenet and often included in the duties and responsibilities of each employee. Some organizations take this one step further and utilize worksite safety observations as an activity ...

Introduction to Data Prediction As safety professionals we collect data. It doesn't make a difference if your focus is general safety, occupational hygiene or a combination of the two. We perform safety observations, collect air samples and perform some analysis on the data to make inferences on ...

If, like me, you are old enough to have watched TV in the late seventies and early eighties, you may recall a slightly offbeat TV show called “In Search of…” The show was narrated by Leonard Nimoy – the famed actor who played Dr. Spock on the original Star Trek television series. The show was often ...

Regardless of how it’s done, workplace monitoring is a critical and longstanding function of the safety profession. It’s also encouraging to see line managers and selected employees increasingly involved in this function as well. The goal of safety monitoring is to gain a better understanding of ...

Wallflowers are under appreciated. I’m not talking about the rock band fronted by Jakob Dylan, son of 60’s rock legend Bob Dylan. No, I’m talking about the unassuming, shy, serious, soft-spoken, thoughtful folks that would rather read a book than attend a party. You know, the sort of ...