Doing Something Bad Well

Doing Something Bad Well

Every time I write about the strange projections of Safety or criticize pathetic attempts to remain relevant I get this strange response of ‘well at least they are trying to do something’. What a strange idea. A good example is this dumb campaign from Safework NZ on meerkats (https://safetyrisk.net/meerkat-mythology-in-safety/ ; https://safetyrisk.net/meerkat-safety-can-it-get-more-dumb/ ). The close mindedness, insular perception and lack of consideration for trajectories is breath taking. This insane idea that its better to do something bad well than nothing at all is pure safety mythology. There are a hundred reasons why doing nothing at all could cause less harm.

If you want to destroy any chance of credibility, intelligence, professionalism or respectability in safety then run a ‘Mum’s for Safety’ campaign (https://safetyrisk.net/dumbs-for-safety/ ). How on earth can you take anything seriously when safety is all determined by having mum around??? How could one expect any credibility when safety made a dysfunctional codependence and misogynist childishness endorsed by the CEO of Lend Lease? Do these people think for two seconds about the trajectories and outcomes of such silly things?

Safety would be 100% better off without any of these dumb campaigns, dumb ideas and activities that simply discredit any chance of anyone taking safety seriously. And this is the industry that wants to claim the word ‘profession’ as if using such a word makes one so. I get letters from people regularly who speak of their shame in being in the safety industry because some CEO thinks running some PR campaign will make safety affective.

The list of being dumb is extensive: Hazardman by the ACT Regulator was a classic (https://safetyrisk.net/hazardman-wont-save-you/), Dumb ways to die (https://safetyrisk.net/dumb-ways-to-die-doesnt-work/), Sexy Sofie (https://safetyrisk.net/safety-isnt-sexy-and-it-shouldnt-be/) or pickled safety (https://worksafe.govt.nz/managing-health-and-safety/managing-risks/pickled/). And then we have guilt campaigns and zero campaigns by regulators and blitzes (https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/your-industry/construction) all showing that Safety continues to have no idea what to do about risk. The mumbo jumbo that gets created whether branded safety 1, 2 or 32 doesn’t change, it all remains mechanistic, technique-focused and all about objects. It’s like there is a conscious campaign by Safety to remain completely oblivious to the basics.

Every time we do the Intro to SPoR Module (https://cllr.com.au/product/an-introduction-to-the-social-psychology-of-risk-unit-1-free-online-module/ ) we get astonished at just how much Safety ignores the basics in humanizing risk. It’s not rocket science:

· Ask open questions

· Establish understanding

· Non-judgmentalism

· Helping

· Listening

· Learning

· Thinking ethically

· Humble enquiry and

· Care

What is most staggering is that no one joining the course knows how to do these things nor has a method with which to exercise these skills. How strange this industry that would fill a thousand pages in a Body of Knowledge about safety and yet not cover off any of the basics in humanizing risk. Why is it that Safety would rather have complex computer applications, endless PR campaigns, rubbish outcomes, no credibility than undertake the simple basics in safety? No, let’s spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on multimedia companies and marketing pickles, animals, sexualising women, cartoon characters suiciding, heroes and misogyny than undertake some basics in humanizing risk. The whole enterprise is mindblowing. And yet again no critical thinking from Safety, nothing from Women in Safety. Do they actually endorse the endless misogyny in all this stuff?

Unfortunately all this ‘noise’ created in safety has the opposite effect. All of this stuff continues to discredit the industry, creates cynicism, skepticism and pessimism, generates more laughs than a comedy sketch and completely undermines any chance of effective messaging. Then in comes the safety officer from Lend Lease and tries to discuss the sense of safety while workers are laughing at their stupidity. The first time there is an incident the question is: ‘What was Mummy not there to help you?’ ‘ Was Mummy out to lunch?’ or ‘You better speak to your Mummy to get safety right’.

This is what doing bad things well looks like. The damage is done and is hard to undo. So no, either doing nothing is better than any of this stuff, its junk, fraudulent, simplistic and juvenile. The silence on all this junk’ is deafening. No don’t be critical of safety lets do more bad things well.

If you want to make an improvement in safety perhaps look to the elephant in the room, the basis Safety doesn’t want to talk about, the basics safety thinks it does well but doesn’t do at all. The basic stuff ignored by the curriculum and the AIHS BoK all get trotted out and the industry remains in this malaise of meaningless noise with no credibility.

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Dr Rob Long

Expert in Social Psychology, Principal & Trainer at Human Dymensions

Latest posts by Dr Rob Long (see all)

• What’s Your Agenda in Safety? - May 26, 2023
• When Safety Delights in ‘I Told You So’! - May 24, 2023
• Beware the Cult of Denial - May 23, 2023
• Understanding Safety as a Cultural Reproductive Process - May 23, 2023
• Thinking Outside the Safety Bubble - May 21, 2023

PhD., MEd., MOH., BEd., BTh., Dip T., Dip Min., Cert IV TAA, MRMIA Rob is the founder of Human Dymensions and has extensive experience, qualifications and expertise across a range of sectors including government, education, corporate, industry and community sectors over 30 years. Rob has worked at all levels of the education and training sector including serving on various post graduate executive, post graduate supervision, post graduate course design and implementation programs.