When it comes to health and safety, sometimes we all get caught up in the how, and forget to do our homework on the what and why. We’re all too familiar with the idea that we need a strong safety culture that empowers employees to speak out, and take control over their own safety.
However, what are the costs of not doing this?
There are several hurdles to overcome, long before a safety culture can settle in - namely, due diligence obligations. While it's common knowledge that an organisation has legal health and safety compliance requirements, the extent of an officer's involvement is not always well-known.
Many officers aren’t actually aware of how much they need to be in the know about the state of their organisation’s health and safety. Instead, there's often a lot of reluctance from the top-end to engage fully with health and safety and approve investments in appropriate equipment, software, and resources.
It’s important to take a deep dive into the legislation and unpack what the requirements are for both officers, and health and safety leaders in the organisations. Examining what’s needed creates greater clarity and paves the way to justify investments in better health and safety architecture throughout the organisation. The end result? Initiatives like a strong safety culture are backed by the board at the top, and are a lot more effective.