• Employees need to be involved in most every aspect of safety and health.
• Employees are more likely to support and use programs in which they have had input.

The second element of solid safety and health programs is having employee involvement. This is a thread that is in most every safety and health management program standard or specification. Employees need to be involved in most every aspect of safety and health. This means inspections, job hazard analyses, behavioral observations, etc. It means that management needs to communicate with employees, for example through bulletin boards, newsletters, and committees, and seek out workers’ input on changes or decisions that impact safety.

Line workers, for example, have a detailed knowledge of each operation and task at the workplace, and they have the most to gain from preventing or controlling exposure to hazards. And, just in general, workers are likely to go along with ideas and rules when they help develop and implement them. So, the more employees can get involved — and be given shared ownership — the better off the program will be.

Involving employees in a program that directly affects their safety and health is the right thing to do. It is also the smart thing to do. Here is why, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA):

• Rank and file workers are the persons most in contact with potential safety and health hazards. They have a vested interest in effective protection programs.
• Experience has shown that line workers and other rank and file employees make highly valuable problem solvers.
• Group decisions have the advantage of the group’s wider field of experience.
• Employees are more likely to support and use programs in which they have had input.
• Employees who are encouraged to offer their ideas and whose contributions are taken seriously are more satisfied and productive on the job.