Meet the Safety Challenge Every Day with Good Communication

Good communication is fundamental to a safe workplace. Safety messages of all kinds and in all forms must flow all through the organization and be heard by all.
It's often said that safety is everyone's responsibility. It's also often said that management commitment and employee involvement are critical factors in developing an effective safety and health system.
Both these statements are true, of course. And you're the messenger—the link between management and the workforce that makes it all work.
Safety communication is one of your most important roles as a safety professional. Fortunately, there are lots of good ways to communicate your safety messages.

Written Communication

Written safety communications are so often necessary because the material may be technical, complicated, lengthy, and/or because their may be documentation requirements. The written word is also the most flexible way to communicate any kind of safety information to large numbers of employees all at once, while ensuring a consistent message.
Opportunities for written safety communications include:

• Policy statements, which establish the importance of safety and health to the organization, create the safety culture, and drive management and employee commitment to maintaining a safe workplace

• Safety manuals, which provide technical information about specific equipment or processes

• SDSs and labels, which communicate material hazards and precautions

• Signs and posters, which alert employees to hazards and emphasize required protections graphically

• Monthly safety reports, which provide safety statistics and performance measurements, discuss safety initiatives, indicate changes in rules and procedures, and so on

• Incident reports, which analyze near misses, accidents, and other events to discover causes and corrections

• E-mail reminders,which keep employees engaged in and up to date within workplace safety issues

• Safety bulletin boards, which can be used to display a variety of safety reminders, program information, and other eye-catching information

• Safety and health pamphlets, which can be easily and inexpensively distributed to all employees, covering basic safety and wellness issues

• Payroll stuffers, which allow you to reach all employees easily with short, important safety messages

• Letters mailed to employees' homes, which can provide family safety and health information as part of an off-the-job safety program

Other Communications

As important as written communications are, let's not forget the spoken word. Oral communications are an effective—and immediate—way to communicate small bites of safety information. For example:

• Safety reminders from supervisors
• Positive reinforcement for safe performance
• Weekly safety meetings
• Instructional briefings or toolbox talks
• Safety committee discussions
• Feedback from employees on safety issues and concerns
• Hazard and incident reporting

Last, but not least, there's nonverbal communication, such as:

• Leading by example
• Conducting regular safety inspections and audits
• Maintaining housekeeping schedules and standards to provide employees with a clean and neat workplace
• Making safety training a priority

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