The Vision of Zero
The electric utility continues to come to grips with achieving ZERO injuries. It’s a journey that people at all levels in T&D organizations have their eyes on. More than a decade ago I began a campaign of keynote speeches and leadership seminars and workshops feeling like Don Quixote. Continually running headlong at the windmills of the ZERO injury safety culture. Leaders and workers pushed back making statements like:

• “It can’t be done!”
• “This is a dangerous business and injuries just happen.”
• “People are going to make mistakes!”
• “Leaders are only interested in getting a bonus!”
• “Isn’t safety someone else’s responsibility?”
• “How can you make a workplace that safe?”
• “Do you really think it’s possible to have zero injuries?”

Setting the bar high for safety performance is a noble cause. We all like to talk about the seemingly elusive target of ‘zero injuries.’ That’s a vision of what could be, what we hope to accomplish in workplaces across the country. People generally line up in one of two sides of this goal. There’s the ‘it’s impossible to have zero injuries’ camp and then there’s the ‘why would we target anything less than zero’ camp. Admittedly, ‘zero’ is something to strive for and you will need to set goals to accomplish the target. The alternative is that you state a number greater than zero as your vision. Do you envision that ‘X number’ of people will get hurt in your workplace? If so, something is wrong and you better get to work! And, there’s a dark side to the vision and target: I actually know leaders who set numeric goals for injuries because of a bonus plan. “Hmmm, let’s see, we typically have five injuries in the department each year. I’ll set my annual target at no more than five injuries so I’ll get my bonus.” What does that do to morale in your workplace? Is everyone on board?

BALANCING ACT: PEOPLE, REGULATIONS, NUMBERS
Nothing is particularly hard if you divide it into small jobs ~ Henry Ford

What tends to happen in industrial safety programs – particularly in the electric utilities – is that the focus either on numbers (statistics), compliance (rules and regulations), or people (performance). Achieving zero injuries requires balanced values for people, regulations, and numbers. Otherwise, things get out of whack! And the safety management process is not sustainable and injuries occur.

“We don’t work in a dangerous environment. We work in a hazardous environment that we make dangerous by not following safe work procedures and wearing our PPE.” -Brad Miles

When we understand what it takes to create an injury-free workplace, we are able to hit the target of zero injuries more often than not. Hazards are the reason people get hurt, without the hazard there is no injury. When we fail to follow safety procedures and or wear our personal protective equipment, we increase the risk of an injury. A hazard-free workplace is created by actively identifying hazards, evaluating the risk, and applying controls to physically protect employees.

Make it More Difficult to get Hurt
Anything that seems to be impossible or just plain difficult must be broken down into steps. Learning the process of recognizing and controlling hazards takes time mitigate hazards. Some clients understand what we are trying to accomplish and deliberate focus to make sure everyone is not just seeing and reporting hazards but also taking steps to mitigate the hazard to a lower level of risk. What we are attempting to do is create a workplace where it is more difficult to get hurt. Effort is required to hit ZERO; it does not happen just because we say it will.

Eight Concepts to Achieve ZERO

1. Break the job of hitting ZERO injuries down to macro and micro work areas
2. Look at your overall location (think macro: big picture) and see it as a workplace
3. Identify what is in your workplace that can cause injury. (identify hazards in the form of: material, conditions, or activity)
4. Take action to mitigate the hazards in the workplace to a lower level of risk, then
5. Take a look at your worksite (think micro: local or where you are completing tasks)
6. What is in your worksite that can cause injury? (this is a close-up, focused look)
7. What controls can be employed to mitigate the risk of injury (decrease the exposure or impact of the hazard), and remember
8. Ask yourself, “Do we want to reach ZERO injuries in our workplace and are we willing to put out the necessary effort?”

Courage and Tenacity Required
It takes courage and tenacity to set the goal at zero. Courage is required because there will be ‘naysayers’ – those who say it’s not possible. We’ve witnessed some very strong debates – more like arguments – when it comes to shifting the corporate philosophy to one of zero injuries. Tenacity is essential because it’s hard to change a culture. It takes work for a safety culture change to be sustainable.

The big danger in changing to a zero injury culture is that human nature wants to return to the old culture. Corporate cultures tend to be elastic, springing back to the original, unless there is a significant, long-term effort. That’s why it takes unwavering management commitment to get a groundswell of employees who believe in and will do what it takes to ‘get to zero.’

The worst thing that can happen is that company leaders will set an expectation of meeting a target of zero injuries and then abandon the goal. That will only result in a loss of credibility, reinforce a belief that safety is not important, and give the ‘zero naysayers’ a victory.

Avoid the Worst Case Scenario
Sure, you could avoid the worst case by not declaring zero as a goal. But where does that get you? Nowhere.

Here are some things you can do to make zero a sustainable goal in your organization:

1. Set specific goals that support a zero-injury culture such as involving all employees in at least three non-routine safety activities each year. These can include working on a safety committee, investigating an incident, participating in work practice or technical training development, and any number of other tasks.
2. Establish cardinal rules with specific consequences. Many companies have identified safe work practices and safety rules that will lead to life-saving activity. The consequence for lack of adherence to the rule is termination in these companies. While this may seem a bit harsh to some, it sends the undeniable signal that employee safety is the highest priority.
3. Establish documented safe work practices and develop the expectation that all affected leaders and employees know and follow the processes.

These are just a few of the things you can do to build a zero injury culture that sticks. Remember it takes time, tenacity and courage. Do what it takes for the long-haul so everyone can go home every day without injury.
 

About the Author

Carl Potter is a nationally known speaker, author, and consultant in the electric utility industry. He is the author and facilitator of the Hazard Recogntion and Control Workshop, delivered to thousands of people in hundreds of workplaces in the United States and Canada. He has authored eight books and his newest book Conquest for Safety: Leadership Required is now available. Information on his work and presentations can be found at www.carlpotter.com