The collection of beliefs, perceptions and attitudes that employees share in relation to safety initiatives, frameworks and strategy is known as safety culture. A safety climate is the perceived value placed on safety in an organisation at a particular point in time. The perceptions and beliefs held may be influenced by the attitudes, values, opinions and actions of other workers in an organisation, and can change with time and circumstance. As safety climate is a snapshot of safety at one point in time, it can change rapidly. For example, safety climate might be altered after an incident or implementation of a new initiative. Negative individual or group perceptions about safety, if left unidentified or unaddressed can have negative effects on the overall safety culture.
A positive safety climate improves production, reduces compensation and insurance costs and can also:
- Enhance employee safety knowledge and their motivation to behave safely
- Improve employee perception of more support available from management
- Reduce the number of incidents by employees and workgroups
- Increase the uptake of safety related policies and programs
- Reduce the perception amongst employees of exposure to a hazardous environment.
The transition to the new Occupational Health and Safety Standard – ISO45001:2018 requires an increased focused on worker participation, engagement and workplace culture. Organisations are increasingly expected to have insight and understanding into organisational context, including internal culture and values to inform planning and implementation of safety initiatives. The Gallagher Workplace Risk team can help you in gathering the information and insight required to meet these requirements, and successfully implement tailored safety initiatives.
Safety climate can be measured a number of ways depending on the needs and capacity of an organisation. It can be measured formally using survey tools designed to assess an individual’s response to key areas of safety climate. For a smaller organisation, safety climate may be measured through staff focus groups, management interviews, and observation of normal operating procedures within an organisation. A best practice approach would use a combination of these methods. The Gallagher Workplace Risk team can help tailor a solution that works for your business.
The Gallagher Safety Climate Survey provides powerful insights into the safety environment of a workplace. The Gallagher Safety Climate Survey captures:
- Insight – hear from everyone in your business to gain understanding into worker attitudes and behaviours
- Feedback – receive both qualitative and quantitative feedback to support identification of trends and root causes
- Return on Investment – measure ROI on key safety programs and initiatives
- Benchmarking – regular safety climate surveys allow for benchmarking of organisational change
- Action Planning – A Gallagher report provides critical insight for senior leaders on how to best plan for the future.
The wellbeing of your people is fundamental to the success of your organisation and our award-winning Workplace Risk team partner with you to offer practical expertise for ensuring every business is a safe and productive one.
Gallagher Workplace Risk has a wealth of experience and knowledge in safety learn more about our safety capabilities HERE
Contact Gallagher Workplace Risk on 1300 789 467 or enquirieswpr@ajg.com.au to discuss how we can support your business.
