Leadership behavior that reduces injuries in the workplace
Workplace safety is very important as it is one of the obligations an organization owes to its employees and clients. Every employer of labor must have the understanding that the safety of her worker is Paramount to the level of growth the organization is likely to have. There is a saying that “the safer the environment, the easier it is to get the job done”.
While workplace safety can be achieved through a lot of other means and methods. There are leadership skills and behavior that help to limit workplace injuries among workers. These skills and behavior if taken and handled with care will go a long way in making the environment safer and accommodating for the company.
Below are leadership behavior that can help reduce the level of injuries that workers within the organization encounter during their daily work
1. Correcting the belief in safety
Some of our beliefs have been stated so many times that they can now be classified as platitudes. A platitude is a moral statement that has been overused to the extent that it has lost meaning. Most of the time in safety industries, safety professionals often turn the belief of safety into platitudes, and at this point, you see low-ranked employees not following the standard of safety because the belief has been overused or abused. The need for correction of safety beliefs is very important so as to avoid its abuse. Many of us would say that “Safety First” ranks among our personal beliefs. We often don’t give this a second thought since we see it often and, of course, we have abused it. However, while it seems to be the right thing to say, do we actually believe it and act on it?
2. Educating workers on the importance of safety.
Safety leaders can minimize on-the-job injuries and accidents with a robust safety training program. Safety training aids staff members in identifying safety hazards and addressing them. Training helps employees understand approved practices and safety expectations.
Safety training is crucial for workers gaining solid knowledge of safety topics associated with their jobs. If safety isn’t made explicitly relevant to employees’ jobs, they will be at greater risk for injury, illness, or even death. Educating employees on the need for safety is very important in reducing workplace injuries.
3. Staying active under pressure
Stress is a normal part of modern life, but if you’re often faced with stressful situations and feel panicked or overwhelmed trying to deal with them as a leader, it will become difficult to control the number of injuries and accidents which you can cause within the working environment. Leaders who are not working under pressure are likely to cause more physiological injuries to employees under them. Either directly or indirectly.
Pressure can put the body into “fight or flight” mode – an evolutionary tactic that releases hormones designed to get you ready to either fight or run from danger. But when a leader has been trained to stand under pressure, it becomes easier to face whatever situation and, most importantly, take an adequate decision at that time.
4. Provide constructive feedback.
As its name suggests, constructive feedback is feedback regarding an individual’s performance that can be used to build (construct) successful skills and behaviors. A typical example is “Temi, I noticed you came into work later than usual and missed the beginning of yesterday’s meeting. I am worried you did not hear important information concerning our project that may affect your tasks this week. If you can read the manual, it will give you a better idea of what is expected of you. Constructive feedback helps employees to understand that the leadership did care about them and their work output.
5. Engage employees in solving safety problems.
Employees engagement means that workers are committed to the organization and its objectives. Engaged employees feel connected to their employer, are highly motivated, and put forth their best effort at work. When a safety problem is discussed, it means with safety, we’re referring to employees who have clear understanding of the organization’s safety objectives and are personally invested in achieving those outcomes. Every employee must be engaged in ensuring the safety of the company. All these are leadership skills a leader must put in to control everyone working under him.