In business, people measure everything…even us as EHS Professionals. It seams from the safety/health standpoint the only metric to be measured by is recordable incident rate which may at times be more of a function of medical management rather than injury rate. From an environmental standpoint it seams to just be the total number of events. So instead of complaining I want to posed the question of the week!
How would you like to be measured as an EHS Professional? What are the best metrics for measurement of EHS performance?
Please leave your ideas/your experience in the comments!
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For me, the ideal metric is probably not measureable. Worker perception is very important to me. If our employees go home and tell their family and friends that they work in a safe and environmentaly responsible place, I’ve done my job. Keeping people safe and doing our part to protect the planet is the reason I am here. If you concentrate on doing the basics and doing them well, the numbers take care of themselves. Example: Last year, we had 1 recordable, no lost days, and recycled almost 7 million pounds of production waste. We are a heavy industry (forging) that traditionally has a lot of injuries. We are also less than 50 employees so each one is a critical link in the production chain.
Bill,
Awesome answer and congratulations on the excellent safety record! Your answer sparked another question…do you ever use perception surveys to document worker sentiments? I know I like gauging morale on a daily basis, but it is cool to put out a perception survey and then hear back all the positive comments.
Sam:
I like to do perception surveys when I first get introduced to a group. Then again some time, at least a year, later. It’s kind of fun to compare the two. I also use them to keep an eye on any morale problems that may sneak in. Attitudes always affect workplace safety. This is especially true in tough economic times when there is some doubt about the future of thier workplace. I have my own perception survey that I use plus we belong to the Forging Industry Association (FIA) and they send one out for us to use. I think they are a great tool and they help me be a better safety officer.
Bill,
We have a very similar approach, great minds think alike, right? Is there one question in your survey that you think is the key question? I know the key question for me was one about looking out for each others safety. I believe we’ve made a real difference when everyone feels responsible for their co-workers safety.
Sam:
I agree. Are you familiar with Art Fettig? Art has a program that he presents to companies that is based on that same idea. He even has everyone sign a pledge saying that they will assume the responsibility to correct any unsafe act or behavior. And they will always look out for their co-workers.He calls it his 101 Pledge.( http://www.artfettig.com ) I have never heard Art speak but I do get his weekly newsletter. He has a tremendous amount of experience in worker safety and is a unique and interesting guy.
Bill,
I have never heard of Art Fettig, but I am checking out his site tonight!