7 quotes to inspire a stronger workplace safety culture

Author: BLR

Looking for some inspiration to create a stronger safety culture?

Creating a culture of safety starts at the top, with employers who recognize the need for processes that are easy to follow. What do your leaders have to say about safety? What do your employees have to say about safety? These seven quotes from prominent safety professionals and public figures might provoke some thought.

“Measuring performance by the number of injuries you have is like measuring parenting by the number of smacks you give.” -Dr. Robert Long

“Safety is not an intellectual exercise to keep us in work. It is a matter of life and death. It is the sum of our contributions to safety management that determines whether the people we work with live or die.” -Sir Brian Appleton, safety assessor

“If you put good people in bad systems, you get bad results. You have to water the flowers you want to grow.” -Stephen Covey

“Don’t do something detrimental to yourself. In hurting yourself, you obviously do damage to you, but you are part of the team, so when you damage yourself via a poor choice, you are hurting the team as well.” -Matt Forck

“You are your own last line of defense in safety. It all boils down to you.” -Kina Repp, workplace accident survivor and motivational speaker

“Error is pervasive. The unexpected is pervasive… What is not pervasive are well-developed skills to detect and contain these errors at their early stages.” -Karl E. Weick, author, Managing the Unexpected

“It takes leadership to improve safety” — Jackie Stewart

If your organization has a negative attitude towards safety, focus on the things they do believe in. Learn how to leverage things like safety bonuses and a family focus, so that employees see you care about the same things they care about. Helping your company realize that everyone who works there is on the same team and cares about each other will not only increase safety culture, but will also increase company culture, quality, and productivity.

If you’re looking for support getting your people on the same page and maintaining a positive safety culture, our EHS management system can help you move the needle in your organization while allowing you to invest in what really matters: your people. Learn more by clicking here.