Is it Necessary to Discipline Workers?
Guest Post
Any workplace has requirements for safety. Those requirements are in-place to ensure that workers refrain from dangerous activity that will cause injury to themselves and others. Workers are, however, human, and therefore have the innate capacity to create new solutions to solve their challenges–as beneficial as this; in the workplace this innovative approach can spell disaster when safety is forsaken for a shortcut.
Is it Necessary to Discipline Workers in order to adhere to safety standards? This question is often asked with a disclaimer such as… “All my workers are generally safe workers; they just fool around a bit,” OR “this is an isolated incident and I am sure this will not happen AGAIN.”
The answer to the question above is, YES it is necessary to discipline workers in order to adhere to safety standards, but in the everyday workplace, implementation is not that simple. To discipline a worker there must be clear understanding of the rules and expectations around safety. When a worker does something that contradicts the rules that worker must be appropriately disciplined (verbal, written, or dismissal) depending on the severity. This decision is based on a written Discipline Policy that workers have been trained on and understand. Rules and discipline must be discussed at orientation and regularly at safety meetings.
If your company safety rules state – Do not remove the guard from a grinder – the removal of the guard by a worker must result in discipline; even if the rebuttal is that “the guard had to be removed for the job!” There are always ways to ensure that a task is completed safely. For example, maybe you have a rule exemption that requires a written hazard assessment and supervisor sign off to break a rule. Workers must be made aware of, and understand, any process that allows for an exemption. Beyond that, some rules will never allow for an exemption! This is the simple fact of working within a hazardous work environment.
Any discipline must be taken immediately after the non-compliance event. This will ensure an immediate correlation between the rule-breaking and the disciplined follow-up. All warnings and records must be kept in the workers’ file in order to monitor the safety longevity of the worker. Even verbal warnings should be documented.
Additionally, every discipline event should be followed up with a dedicated safety prevention action (additional training, more frequent drug / alcohol testing, updates to practice, procedures, or policies, discussion in Safety Meetings, etc.). Importantly, workers must understand and believe in the lessons stemming from each event (without pointing out the person or group who was disciplined). There must be a continual buy-in, which can take the form of leading-by-example, or goal-setting alongside a rewards-program.
Annually review your discipline policy and strategies. Ensure your policy discusses the types of infractions that require a verbal warning, written warning, suspension, or dismissal. When the discipline type is clear the company can spend more effort understanding why an event occurred than debating the discipline methods. Allow / encourage workers to give input.
The use of your discipline program will ensure workers understand the rules and consequences; consistency and communication is important.
Julie Tilley is a safety professional at Workforce Compliance Safety Ltd., a consulting company in Canada that helps employers stay compliant with safety standards.
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