Engaging individuals and groups in promoting a positive safety culture

This document discusses the importance of engaging individuals and groups in promoting and developing a positive safety culture in the workplace. It explores the process of conducting situational analysis, assessing employee attitudes, and implementing an action plan. The document also emphasizes the need to change attitudes and beliefs to maintain occupational health and safety standards. The subject of this document is occupational health and safety, and it is relevant for individuals studying or working in this field.

Occupational health and safety
University
Professor name
Word count

Contents
Project 1- Engaging individuals and groups in the promotion and development of a positive
safety culture....................................................................................................................................3
Feelings........................................................................................................................................3
Evaluation....................................................................................................................................3
Analysis........................................................................................................................................3
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................4
Action plan...................................................................................................................................4
Project 2 Developing or implementing health and safety emergency response systems, and
contingency plans and procedures...................................................................................................4
Feelings........................................................................................................................................4
Evaluation....................................................................................................................................4
Analysis........................................................................................................................................5
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................5
Action plan...................................................................................................................................5
References........................................................................................................................................6

Project 1- Engaging individuals and groups in the promotion and development of a positive
safety culture
Feelings
I have been positioned as occupation and health manager in an or4ganization so my work is to
maintain the occupation safety standards according to WHS legislation. For this purpose, first I
will conduct situational analysis so as to know the point of weaknesses. Then investigations will
be conducted to assess the attitude of employees regarding the same. After that, there will be the
implementation of action plan. From preliminary investigations, it has been revealed that there is
a need to change the workplace culture in the organization so that occupational health and safety
standards are maintained. For this purpose, the attitudes and beliefs of the employees and higher
authorities in the organization needed to be changed. It has been revealed from clear
investigations and analysis that for the purpose of maintaining the standards regarding
occupational safety, the culture of the organization needs to be changed. There is a need to
change the attitudes and beliefs so as to implement this change in culture. Convincing the
employees seems to be a daunting task as merely persuasion will not be appropriate. The primary
task is to get relevant information and find out if employees and management are aware of the
need to have occupational safeguards in place. After identifying this, the task is to have a
positive impact on the safety and health culture of the organization. There need to implement
policy in regard to behavioral changes. Culture is developed gradually and changing it needs
effective planning and leadership skills. The policy must be adopted to achieve practical and
realistic targets related to occupational safety (Kogi, 2002). I am feeling that it would be a
difficult task, but not impossible. The culture of the organization can be changed by maintaining
transparency and inclusive approach. I am hopeful for better results and outcomes.

Evaluation
The cultural issues have greater importance than the factors affecting workplace safety. Every
individual tends to perform the task according to the norms adopted in the organization. The
workplace safety culture is a broad term that encompasses practices of shared working, tolerating
and accepting risks, controlling hazards and dealing with contingencies. The way of doing things
in a certain manner is known as workplace culture. I could evaluate from my personal experience
that the connection between poor workplace practices and resulting poor health can be less
enforceable. It can be said in wider terms that workplace safety culture is the combination of
feelings regarding safety, actual things done and procedures and policies of the particular
organization. There is a need to maintain balance related to needs and aspirations so that change
in culture is done without any persuasion and misunderstanding. If the misunderstanding is
allowed, in that case, the employees who are key talented persons of the organization may leave
the organization. Plus, employees can go on strike leading to loss of productivity. This situation
has to be prevented so that no misunderstanding takes place in the process of change
implementation.

Analysis
Three key elements play of safety culture comes in the role here- rules and practices related to
management of hazards; positive attitude and risk management, and learning ability from near
misses or accidents. I and other managers of the organization will strive hard to bring positive
attitude n the working of the organization. To make this happen, the organization will be made to
learn from near miss and accidents. The awareness regarding the accidents and safety measures
is important to deal with future contingencies. In addition to this, there is a need to have honest
investigation reports generation so that I and managers can analyze the situation well and
concentrate on desired aspects. There will be policy to change the behavior and culture prevalent
in the organization and create new possibilities, regular check-ins, and stronger leadership
(Perry, and Lindell, 2003). A thorough analysis will lead to pointing out the weaknesses and
strong points in the policy of the organization. There will be sound criteria based on which the
different findings will be evaluated and WHS legislation will be adhered to. There will be a
complete analysis of near miss and accidents happened in the past; those incidents will reveal the
shortcomings in the approach of the organization as far as occupational safety is concerned.

Conclusion
The workplace culture is associated with success and long-term survivability of the organization
so implementing any change in the workplace culture can be a challenging task. By positive
thinking and effective leadership, the change can be done in the organization without any major
hiccups. First of all, the plans and procedures related to change implementation will be
understood. Senior managers need to commit themselves to bring the change otherwise the plan
can have harmful repercussions. So there will be an inclusive approach; along with senior
managers the local workforce would be included in the change implementation. The local
workforce participation will lead to awareness regarding ground-realities and consequent damage
incurred due to accidents. The local workforce participation will ensure the success of the plan.
For this to happen, the plan will be communicated to all stakeholders on the appropriate time.
This needs an efficient knowledge management policy as there is a risk of loss of intellectual
property rights if knowledge management is poor. Loss of intellectual property rights can lead to
loss of competitive advantage, ultimately impacting the sustainability. To prevent such risks,
knowledge management will be done keeping all the relevant factors in mind.

Action plan
The commitment of the local workforce and senior managers towards workplace safety would be
analyzed first of all. There will be an inclusive approach. I would have to show efficient
leadership skills so that an inclusive approach is maintained and cultural change is implemented
without any resistance. Any kind of haste can generate resistance from the local workforce.
Keeping that aspect in mind, the action plan will be formed and executed. There will be complete
analysis and sound management strategies which will be implicitly or exp0licitly included in the
action plan. The action plan will be such that it addresses all unique needs and requirements of
the organization. The action plan formation is a crucial part of overall planning so it suitable
emphasis will be given towards its formation. Along with this, the mid-term appraisal will be
done so as to check the outcomes of the action plan and keep the plan going on in the desired
direction.

Project 2 Developing or implementing health and safety emergency response
systems, and contingency plans and procedures.
Feelings
I am able to feel that developing a plan and executing it will not be easy. I alone cannot perform
all tasks so there is need to engage every stakeholder so that the plan can be made and executed
in an effective manner. The stakeholders include employees, H& S professionals and so forth.
The organization must be prevented from any loss due to change implementation as the plan may
affect one or more aspects of the workplace requirements (Perry, and Lindell, 2003). Any
contingency emerged during the action plan implementation will be dealt with utmost care so
there will be ready alternative solutions available to contingencies. Contingencies will be
included in the action plan from the beginning so that the organization is not mired with any
controversy and does not face any unsuspected problem. There have been mixed feelings
regarding the project. On the one hand the difficulty in implementing the change makes me
anxious; on the other hand, the enthusiasm related to better outcomes inspires me to go ahead
with the project. The project needs to well-planned and executed so that intended outcomes are
yielded. The anxiety will be over, once the plan is implemented without any major derailment in
the efforts. There must be sound approach so that difficulties related to implementation can be
overcome with readily made decisions and effective solutions. The plan needs to be implemented
with full sincerity so that everyone involved in the process is confident to have better outcomes
in the future. There must be effective ready-made solutions for the predicted problems or
contingencies along with suitable responses to deal with unpredictable accidents.

Evaluation
The views of other individuals associated with the task will be taken and an alternate view will
be evaluated. The best alternative will be chosen and the views of every individual will be
considered. The broadening of practice into wider competencies and the specialization of
existing competencies will be considered for the purpose of change implementation. According
to my experience, I believe that local employees are a better harbinger of growth and success
because they are aware of ground realities. Consulting them in the whole process will give a
better view of the problem (Kogi, 2002). I evaluated in the task that issues related to
occupational safety come from weaknesses in planning and reinforcement of these plans. Risk
management implies that the organization is aware of potential threats to its working and better
able to deal with contingencies. The risk and emergency management is a continuous process so
as a health and safety officer I need to assure that different component of the emergency report
systems are integrated. The integrated approach will yield better outcomes and there will be the
smooth implementation of the action plan. The organization will be on the trajectory of growth
and can be the biggest corporate giant in its field. The occupational health and safety measures in
such a scenario cannot be left to the mercy of a few individuals. All the relevant stakeholders
need to be considered so that no one feels left outside of the process. Along with yielding
economic benefits, this will generate goodwill for the organization, resulting in many non-
economic benefits.

Analysis
There are five components of the health and safety management in an organization. These five
components are- preparedness, prevention, mitigation, response, and recovery. These elements
must be implemented in the organization as they will help in emergencies as a response to the
problem. They can be the first line of defense against the contingencies in the organization.
These components must be aligned or in sync to the overall policy of the organization or there is
need to take a broader view of the problem. The organization must be prepared to deal with any
untoward accident and contingency along with risk mitigation plans. The response to
contingencies will be adequate and according to the overall workplace safety of the organization.
This will prevent the company from controversies and legal cost resulting in economic
advantage. The legal costs reduce the profit of the organization and impact the brand image;
thus, they must be prevented by every mean.

Conclusion
Emergency response system has an important role to play during contingencies. The emergency
management, which is at the center of workplace health and safety policy, depends on the
comprehensiveness and strength of the plan. Therefore inclusive approach will not only lead to
better strategy, but it will also build the resilience of organization against disruptions. In addition
to this, the plan and policies related to the workplace safety need to be changed with the
exigencies of time. The new situation has unique requirements which cannot be met by the
business-as-usual approach. The involvement of all stakeholders is a big asset in the policies
related to workplace safety. The managers deal with daily function of the organization but other
stakeholders also have important say in the matters of the organization. All stakeholders have
their own role to play in the success and growth of the organization. Their role in occupational
safety as well cannot be ignored. The organization must abide by its principles of transparency
and inclusivity so that the consent of every stakeholder is taken before implementing any cultural
change plan.

Action plan
After developing a plan, I have realized that the occupational health safety is paramount in the
organization and the work of the concerned office significantly matters for the success of the
organization. I have got to know that contingencies plan needs to be updated with the passage of
time with the involvement of all relevant stakeholders so that the resources and information can
be better channelized through different processes. Any change in the current policy needs a
consultation with all stakeholders. The inclusive approach will lead to better output and
outcomes. There will be better prospects and sound management deals. There have to be
different approaches towards different problems so that every problem is solved in a timely
manner and adequate skills without unnecessary wastage of available physical and human
resources. The resources will be utilized with efficiency so that wastage is reduced to the
minimum. Along with this, the plan will ensure long-term sustainability in terms of
environmental factors. This aspect has to be considered as this has become the hot topic of the
21st century, especially after the Paris climate deal of 2014. Moreover, the organization itself
requires sustainability for long-time survivability. The long-time visions of the organization can
be achieved by the longtime sustainability measures.

References
Kogi, K., 2002. Work improvement and occupational safety and health management systems:
common features and research needs. Industrial health, 40(2), pp.121-133.
Perry, R.W. and Lindell, M.K., 2003. Preparedness for emergency response: guidelines for the
emergency planning process. Disasters, 27(4), pp.336-350.