Ratio Delusions and Heinrich’s Hoax There’s no doubt that founding interests in safety emerged from insurance and engineering. The concocted rubbish of Heinrich in 1931 was founded in mechanistic assumptions of apportioning blame and responsibility for compensation. It is from this foundation that … [Read more...] about Ratio Delusions and Heinrich’s Hoax
heinrich
Advancing Backwards in Safety
I had a call from a mate this week, the board of his company have been mesmerised by a presentation of the latest advances in safety. So I asked to see a copy of this presentation expecting some astounding research and scintillating stuff taking safety into the future. So what did I see? Bradley … [Read more...] about Advancing Backwards in Safety
Hoodwinked by Heinrich
Hoodwinked by Heinrich I have written before about the Heinrich Hoax and Delusion (https://safetyrisk.net/ration-delusions-and-heinrichs-hoax/), the Heinrich Hoodoo (https://safetyrisk.net/the-heinrich-hoodoo/) and Heinrich Propaganda (https://safetyrisk.net/the-heinrich-hoodoo/). All this critique … [Read more...] about Hoodwinked by Heinrich
Incrementalism, Catastrophism and All That’s In-between
Dr Rob Long has posted many articles on the dangers of zero harm here. This is perhaps the heaviest argument he has ever written against zero – WARNING: Some traditional safety people may be offended or find themselves performing some complex mental gymnastics! Incrementalism, Catastrophism and … [Read more...] about Incrementalism, Catastrophism and All That’s In-between
The Voodoo of The Hoodoo
The Voodoo of The Hoodoo Deleuze rightly states that the idea of common sense is: a dogmatic, orthodox and moral image of thought. To recognise this is the first step in critical thought. If one cares to think about presuppositions in suppositions, then one is well on the way to thinking … [Read more...] about The Voodoo of The Hoodoo
The Domino Myth in Safety
Continuing our series on Safety Myths – see them all here It seems whenever a safety book wants to identify its roots it traces itself back to Heinrich, Bird, Weaver, Adams, Loftus, Reason and Petersen and the mythical domino construct (The Domino Delusion). Always be suspicious of engineers using … [Read more...] about The Domino Myth in Safety
The Heinrich Hoodoo
The Heinrich Hoodoo If there was ever a disastrous start to the birth of an industry it has to be safety. When Herbert Heinrich published Industrial Accident Prevention in 1931 he launched an industry that would be obsessed with numerics, metrics, counting and misattribution. Most of what Heinrich … [Read more...] about The Heinrich Hoodoo
Why Do Anything About Injuries When You Can Pretend to Take Action Instead?
Why Do Anything About Injuries When You Can Pretend to Take Action Instead? by Phil La Duke. First published on his blog HERE Safety is not a humanitarian effort. We all know the story of the days of yore when the loss of life—from building the pyramids to building the Brooklyn Bridge—was just … [Read more...] about Why Do Anything About Injuries When You Can Pretend to Take Action Instead?
Heinrich’s Propaganda
Guest post by one of the USA based students in The Centre for Leadership and Learning in Risk (CLLR) online program https://cllr.com.au/online-courses-overseas-students/ Heinrich’s Propaganda Virtually everyone that works in the safety industry has seen and is familiar with “The Hienrich pyramid”. … [Read more...] about Heinrich’s Propaganda
Heinrich–Industrial Accident Prevention
Heinrich – Industrial Accident Prevention I am embarrassed to admit that it was only a few years ago that I stopped extolling the virtues of Heinrich and his Pyramid – hey it was a simple concept, sort of made sense and the punters loved it! Please forgive me - Dave If you haven't yet seen the … [Read more...] about Heinrich–Industrial Accident Prevention