APRIL 2025CONSTRUCTIONTECHREVIEW.COM9challenge them to make safe choices on the jobsite. It will help you hold them accountable as well. Done correctly, they will feel like they let you down and be disappointed in themselves which gives them a little more focus on choosing to work safely more consistently.Hazard IdentificationAn old safety slogan that has always been a favorite due to its simple but powerful wording is "Take two!" Take two seconds to ask yourself two questions when first inspecting any job site. What can hurt me? What am I going to do about it? Whether you have inspection forms, or use cell phones or tablets, training your employees to look at hazard identification is a never-ending process of safety. Your employees represent the "last stand" no matter what your safety program's different policies and procedures are. This is where your employee faces the greatest risk, the choices they are about to make. Train them to know what to look for, encourage your veteran employees to lead and coach their coworkers, what to do to mitigate the hazards they identify and finally to execute on mitigation. Can they abate some minor hazards, hopefully? If not train that. Do they know how to call you for assistance with those hazards? If not train that as well. Ultimately you need to be able to trust they won't make an unsafe choice and "raise a hand" when they need help. Managers and front-line supervisors are the ones that make that happen Jobsite Safety Inspections by the Supervisory TeamRegardless of the size of your organization, another cornerstone is the supervision teams going to check on their employees while working in the field. Regardless of the method, in terms of technology, what never changes is the need for managers to see and engage their employees while doing their work. From a safety perspective it ensures employees are correctly identifying the hazards at the jobsite, working safely and following their safety training. It is also a great way to check for quality to ensure passing inspections and checking to see if the team has everything they need to do the job safely. It allows for relationship development, with both their employees and customers. Training/ Safety MeetingsYou might conduct an "old school" stand-up tailgate style safety meeting in the dark with head lamps turned on at 5 AM. Maybe you use VR to place employees in a safe environment to learn and train. Perhaps you send a group text first thing each morning reminding your team to complete their 3-minute micro-learning safety module for the day. Training remains a pillar of safety. Over the last 20 years the industry has seen so much development and the advancement of training delivery methods. Regardless of how you choose to train, using a variety of methods geared toward the learning styles of your employees to statistically achieve the best learning retention rates never change. Knowing the costs of labor associated with the time spent on safety meetings should lead to a consistent question. "Am I getting my money's worth out of my safety meetings?" Even if you are not deploying AI or online safety courses, the best training is when your employees consistently execute safe production in the field as a result. The more things change and evolve the more they stay the same. I often say to my colleagues that my job is to say the same thing over and over and not have you tune out the safety message. That is because what we need to manage for a successful safety program and culture is the same now as it was over two decades ago. Go out today and check on and connect with your most valuable asset--your employees. Oh, and don't get hurt! What we need to manage for a successful safety program and culture is the same now as it was over two decades ago. Go out today and check on and connect with your most valuable asset--your employees
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