When one reads ISO 45003 or any other Codes of Practice regarding Psychosocial Health it is clear that the engineers are in town. It is as if a ‘cut and paste’ has been done associating Psychosocial health as if it is just another hazard. It is NOT! Of course, the history of the safety industry … [Read more...] about Not Just Another ‘Hazard’
Mental health
Psychosocial Safety, Is it possible to make it culturally normal?
Most people would agree that wanting a Psycho-Socially safe workplace is a desirable thing. The Federal Government of Australia definitely thought so when they introduced Psycho-Social Hazards into managing Health and Safety see SafeWork Australia . All of us have biases that reflect our … [Read more...] about Psychosocial Safety, Is it possible to make it culturally normal?
How to Be Oriented Towards Psychosocial and Mental Health in Safety
Continuing with our series on Psychosocial Safety Dos and Don’ts Don’t ever associate Psychosocial and Mental Health with hazards. Whilst Psychosocial and Mental Health pose many challenges for organisations, these challenges are NOT hazards. Such language can only ever toxify the workplace … [Read more...] about How to Be Oriented Towards Psychosocial and Mental Health in Safety
ISO 45003 and What it Cannot Do
As we read through the ISO Standard 45003 we see so much nonsense language it is difficult to know where to start. So, let’s just progress through the document and respond to the language used. (We will tackle the complementary codes of practice another time). Point 1 in Scope we have this: ‘It … [Read more...] about ISO 45003 and What it Cannot Do
The KISS of Death in Safety
I came across this Safety ‘goop’ a few weeks ago that serves as a good example of the nature of indoctrination in this industry (https://www.qmihsconference.org.au/wp-content/uploads/qmihsc-2008-writtenpaper-reynoldson.pdf). One of the most reliable things in safety and characteristic of its … [Read more...] about The KISS of Death in Safety
Behavioural Safety is NOT a Foundation for Tackling Psychosocial and Mental Health
The foundation for behaviourism is the myth of ‘in and out’. This simplistic discipline imagines that fallible humans respond to positive and negative reinforcement like computer-like objects. Behaviour then becomes the sum of inputs and outputs. Nothing could be further from the truth. All of this … [Read more...] about Behavioural Safety is NOT a Foundation for Tackling Psychosocial and Mental Health
The Worst Approach to Psychosocial Problems is an Attitude of ‘Fixing’
One of the principles of Wicked Problems is that any attempt to ‘fix’ such a problem usually makes things worse. Indeed, taking an accepted ‘problem solving’ approach to a wicked problem is not just futile but dangerous. Rittel and Weber identified ten primary characteristics of wicked … [Read more...] about The Worst Approach to Psychosocial Problems is an Attitude of ‘Fixing’
The Language of ‘Hazards’ and Psychosocial, Mental Health
Safety is the industry of ‘hazards’ and ‘controls’. This is the most popular and frequently used language for an industry that struggles to be ethical and professional. Now with the advent of ISO 45003, all of a sudden, this industry has to become person-centric, human-centric and holistic, fat … [Read more...] about The Language of ‘Hazards’ and Psychosocial, Mental Health
Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
Well, you have to hand it to the zero industry. Going into the abyss in a tissue box armed with a Cert 4 OHS. And what is this minefield? ISO 45003:2021 OHS Safety Management – Psychosocial Health and Safety at Work – Guidelines for Managing Psychosocial Risks. Only the industry of zero, metrics, … [Read more...] about Welcome to the Nightmare, Safety Creates its Own Minefield (as usual)
No Good Reason to Follow Reason
Whenever Safety puts conditionality on culture is no longer talks about Culture but rather the adjective that qualifies thinking about culture. We see this with the work of Reason who applied 5 adjectives to define a culture of safety. These are: ‘reporting’, ‘informed’, ‘learning’, ‘just’ and … [Read more...] about No Good Reason to Follow Reason
