One of the fascinating characteristics of the zero cult is that it always comes ‘from above’, never below. Those at the coalface of risk, those from below know it is bullS*#t. Our Zero Survey (https://safetyrisk.net/take-the-zero-survey/) with over 4000 respondents demonstrates this conclusively.
When you look at the Invitation to the Great Zero Event (p.7) soon to be held in Sydney in November you read this from Dr Mohammed Azman bin Aziz Mohammed:
‘Together with the social partners and the ministries in charge of occupational safety and health, they actively promote a global prevention culture with the goal of zero occupational accidents and diseases.
The ISSA’s Vision Zero strategy offers easy-to-implement solutions for companies and policy makers. In fact, there are companies that have managed to reduce their Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate by adopting the ISSA’s Vision Zero proactive leading indicators. Also, there are social security institutions who have had great outreach success by aligning their prevention strategy to the Seven Golden Rules of Vision Zero.’
This is the kind of gobbledygook CEO’s speak to people. But does this ideology apply to them? Are they held accountable for any mistake? Any lack of judgment? Any poor decision? Any error? Any unachieved goal? Of course not!
Zero is always good for other people, it never must be applied upward.
Looking at this comment above and forget that injury rates are NOT a measure of safety, we see claims with no evidence indeed, there is no evidence that the language of zero attains anything. There is no such thing as a ‘zero strategy’, no such thing as a ‘zero method’. And the Seven Golden Rules of Zero are neither ‘golden’ (https://safetyrisk.net/auditing-the-7-golden-rules-of-zero-a-miserable-fail/) or anything different from standard safety policing of systems.
Of course, one of the most profound rules in the history of ‘golden rules’ (https://safetyrisk.net/7-golden-rules-that-are-not-golden/) is: ‘do unto others, as you would have them do to you’ (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Rule). Well, we know that this doesn’t apply to CEOs when it comes to zero. Only those placed in the highest forms of risk must face this edict. And, if ‘safety is a choice you make’ and ‘all accidents are preventable’ we know what this means, someone must be to blame. Just not the CEO!
Even though it is clear in the Act and Regulation that all safety ends up being the responsibility of the CEO (PCBU). How convenient that zero doesn’t apply to them!
This is the kind of nonsense paraded at this ‘zero event’ (https://safetyrisk.net/the-global-zero-event-this-is-safety/).
It seems the delusion of zero (https://www.humandymensions.com/product/zero-the-great-safety-delusion/) only travels in one direction, down!
The reality is, should the CEO of zero ever get to court the big lesson is coming. The court knows that if zero doesn’t work across the whole company, up and down, that fraudulence is at play and the foundation for unethical conduct. 85% of all respondents to the Zero Survey believe that zero cultivates dishonesty. Greg Smith makes it very clear (https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/163648220), the CEO of zero gets a flogging in court.
This is the kind of hypocrisy that zero ideology creates. This is the kind of delusion that zero fosters. It is simply the ultimate in insanity to apply zero to the reality of fallible people. The result can only ever generate brutalism, that always goes down, never up!
So, perhaps a call to all those out there in zero land, who have to be held accountable to this absurd ideology. Hold your CEOs to account on any mistake, any error and watch the zero ideology get jettisoned quickly so that safety will improve (https://safetyrisk.net/moving-away-from-zero-so-that-safety-improves/).
9. BHP from Human Dymensions on Vimeo.
Dr Rob Long
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