A safety program implemented by sectors within Canadian electrical utility BC Hydro has reduced the number of its on-the-job injuries to almost none, thanks to a program developed by Integrated Performance Systems. The initiative, known as the B-Safe program, takes a behavioral-based approach to workplace safety. Rather than correcting unsafe work practices, the strategy focuses on recognizing and rewarding safe habits. BC Hydro had done everything possible to make the workplace free from hazards. But it found that while the severity of accidents was on the decline, the actual frequency of injuries continued to increase, mainly because employees had not yet developed safe working habits.
According to safety experts, more than 95 percent of all injuries result from unsafe activities, and fewer than five percent are caused by unsafe conditions. To help develop continued safe habits, the B-Safe program starts with a group of workers that draws up a list of their own duties and procedures, along with steps to ensure the tasks are done safely. Each step is assigned a point value. When supervisors randomly observe the crew at work, they award points for any safe acts observed. Team scores are plotted on large charts. When a team reaches a specific goal, members are given rewards such as a letter of praise, doughnuts, flashlights, or tools.
BC Hydro’s vehicle garage in Surrey is an example of the dramatic declines in accidents since the beginning of the program in the 1990s. The garage recorded 12 accidents requiring medical aid in the year before B-Safe was implemented. This was reduced to eight after the first year of B-Safe, then to one at the end of the second year. According to BC Hydro, the program works because it is voluntary and owned by the work team at the site.
Based on a report from ElectricNet.com
