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Looking for higherstandardsBehavioural safety improving performance


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IOSH publishes a range of free

technical guidance. Our

guidance literature is designed

to support and inform

members and motivate and

influence health and safety

stakeholders.

Behavioural safety improvingsafety performanceThis guide provides an overview ofbehavioural safety, demonstrating itslinks to improved safety performance.It covers some historical background,what we mean by behavioural safetyand how it works. There is someguidance to help you decide whether abehavioural safety programme issuitable for your company and, if so,how to start the process. It includescase studies to show the businessbenefits of behavioural safetyprogrammes and links to moreinformation and resources.

If you have any comments or questionsabout this guide please contactResearch and Information Services atIOSH:- t +44 (0)116 257 3100- [email protected]

PDF versions of this and other guidesare available at www.iosh.co.uk/techguide.

Revised February 2012
mailto:[email protected]://www.iosh.co.uk/techguidehttp://www.iosh.co.uk/techguidehttp://www.iosh.co.uk/techguidehttp://www.iosh.co.uk/techguidehttp://www.iosh.co.uk/techguidemailto:[email protected]


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Contents

1 Introduction 022 What is behavioural safety? 033 Background 054 How does behavioural safety work? 065 Making the choice is behavioural safety the right tool? 086 Opting for a behavioural safety programme what next? 09

Case study: Using a behavioural approach to improvesafety in aircraft manoeuvring areas 10

References 12More information and resources 13

Figures1 The safety triangle 042 Implementation of a behavioural safety programme 073 Percentage improvement across the three

intervention categories in the case study 11


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Health and safety in the workplace isinfluenced by a number of factors,from the organisational environmentthrough managers attitude andcommitment to the nature of the jobor task and the personal attributes ofthe worker. Safety-related behaviour inthe workplace can be changed byaddressing these major influences.

One way to improve safetyperformance is to introduce abehavioural safety process thatidentifies and reinforces safe behaviourand reduces unsafe behaviour.Behavioural safety processes arent aquick fix and its important not tooverlook fundamental elements. Youshould begin by concentrating onpolicies and systems assessing andimproving management andoperational factors, training, designand so on.

First researched in the 1970s in the US,the behaviour-based safety approachemerged in UK organisations in thelate 1980s and is now widely used in avariety of sectors in the UK. Wevewritten this guide to introduce thebackground and basic principles ofimplementing a process whichsystematically addresses behaviouralsafety. The techniques described arebased primarily on observation,intervention and feedback as ways ofchanging behaviour.

Business benefits

A manufacturing company with1,400 staff introduced abehavioural safety programme andgained:- improved productivity the

number of work days lostthrough injury per year droppedfrom 550 to 301 in four years

- improved public image thecompanys managers have givenpresentations at majorbehavioural safety conferences

- staff development manyobservers have improvedcommunications and IT skills,and greater confidence.

(Source: HSE)

1 Introduction

02


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Behaviour can be defined as an actionby an individual that is observable byothers. Its estimated that in up to 80per cent of work-related accidents,employees behaviour in the form ofacts or omissions is a contributingfactor.1 Such behaviour can pave theway for many pre-existing factors tocome together in a negative event.There are many reasons why employeesengage in at-risk behaviour at work.Some examples are:- cutting corners to save time: how

often do employees decide not touse personal protective equipment(PPE) because a task may only takeseconds to complete? In thisexample, the at-risk behaviour (thefailure to use PPE) has the instantperceived benefit of saving time

- ergonomic factors: inappropriatelyplaced machine controls may leadto improvised and potentiallydangerous access arrangements

- accepted practice: weve alwaysdone it that way

- reinforcement of at-risk behaviourby the actions of supervisors: thismay also undermine employeesconfidence in the managementscommitment to manage concernssuch as safety

- misunderstanding at-risk behaviour:employees may be unaware, orhave a low perception, of the risksassociated with a particular task or

activity. This could be due toinsufficient information or training- instinctive risk-taking behaviour:

some people are more naturallyinclined than others to take risks.

The emphasis of the behaviour-basedapproach to safety is, as the namesuggests, on employees behaviour.Through influencing behaviour, thissystem can reduce injury rates.

The behaviour-based approach tosafety focuses exclusively on theobservable, measurable behaviourscritical to safety in a particular setting.This is a task-oriented view ofbehaviour, and it treats safe behaviouras a critical work-related skill. Dontconfuse it with inspections and auditsof the workplace for unsafe conditions.

Behavioural safety is part of a naturalprogression of safety managementfrom highly prescriptive approaches,through the engineered or proceduralsystems which most progressivecompanies have long since established,to a system which recognises workersas mature human beings with a

genuine interest in their ownwellbeing, who contribute best whenthey can see that they themselves caninfluence their own safety. To achievethis transition is to change the cultureof the work group involved so itwont achieve instant results. Inaddition, behaviour-based approachesto safety improvement are mosteffective when the engineered andprocedural systems are workingproperly.2

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2 What is behavioural safety?

Business benefits

A behavioural safety programme ata petrochemicals plant broughteconomic benefits, including:- a saving of 250,000 per year

through early identification andrepair of leaks

- a 32 per cent reduction ininsurance premiums

- major reductions in operatingcosts as workers became moreconfident about identifying anddealing with problemsthemselves.

(Source: HSE)


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Human behaviour is often categorisedas reflex/automatic, intended andhabitual. The behavioural approachfocuses on the habitual category. Wedont focus on workers behaviour inorder to blame or punish them. Thesekinds of response are largelycounterproductive and, in any case,some of the behaviour associated withincidents is encouraged or accepted bymanagement systems. The mosteffective approach is to identify andmeasure the safe and unsafe (at-risk)behaviours that are occurring in theworkplace, and manage them.

Measuring behaviour provides thehealth and safety system with a toolfor proactive management. Its a well-established safety approach tocorrelate frequency with severity ofinjuries using accident triangles oraccident ratios. The traditional safety

triangle shows that as severitydecreases, frequency increases. Itssimple to extend the triangle to includenear misses and unsafe behaviours (seeFigure 1). There are more major injuriesthan fatalities, more first aid cases thanover-three-day injuries, and more nearmisses and at-risk behaviours thanincidents of all kinds. At-risk behaviouris an early warning system foraccidents.

The key to reinforcing safe behaviours(good habits) and removing orreducing unsafe ones (bad habits) liesin identifying those behaviours whichare critical to safety and then incarrying out regular observations tomonitor them. Its therefore a proactivesafety management tool, with theinformation being obtained withoutanyone being hurt.

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Figure 1: The safety triangle

Fatalities

First aid

Near misses and at-risk behaviours

Major injuries

Over-three-day injuries


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Behavioural safety approaches werefirst developed and applied in the US inthe 1970s. Komaki et al.3 provided oneof the early studies of the applicationof behavioural approaches to improveoccupational safety in the foodmanufacturing industry. Their studydemonstrated that defining safeworking practices through behaviourand then reinforcing them positivelyoffered a way of promoting safebehaviour at work.

Krause & Hidley4 combined the work ofKomaki et al. with lessons from thequality management field andrecognised training, the use of processindicators, feedback and employeeparticipation as key factors forproviding a sustainable continuousimprovement process.

Krause et al.5 found that immediatepeer-to-peer verbal feedback was themost effective way of achievingbehavioural change in an industrialsetting. After this, Krause carried outseveral behaviour-based safetyinterventions in chemical companiesthat were proponents of total qualitymanagement. Sulzer-Azaroff6 alsoshowed that in order to changebehaviour successfully, you need tounderstand the factors that give rise toand support safe and unsafebehaviours.

From the 1980s onwards, safetyinitiatives based on the observation ofsafe and unsafe acts or behaviourswere implemented in Europe. Severalstudies have been conducted indifferent UK industrial sectors, forexample in construction,7,8

manufacturing,9 nuclear energy10 andresearch.11 In addition, the Health and

Safety Executive (HSE)12 has providedcase study examples.

3 Background


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4 How does behavioural safety work?

Its possible to recognise a number ofcommon features across the varioussystems:- Leading from the top. Top

management needs to buy intothe programme to ensurecommitment and resources for theorganisation.

- Significant workforceparticipation. Full engagement ofthe workforce in the programme is

an essential part of behaviouralsafety. Without this engagement,its difficult to make improvements.

- Targeting specific unsafebehaviours. The programmefocuses on the small percentage ofunsafe behaviours that areresponsible for a large percentageof an organisations accidents orincidents. These can be identifiedby systematically examining theorganisations accident and

incident records. Gettingemployees and managementworking together to understandthe reasons for unsafe behavioursand to identify and agree targetsfor change helps to promoteownership and agree commonbehavioural measures.

- Observational data collection.Trained observers regularly monitortheir colleagues safety behaviouragainst agreed measures. Making anobservation is like taking a

photograph it provides a snapshotof a moment in time. The greaterthe number of observations, themore reliable the data become, asthe employees true behaviouralpattern can be established. Its

important to understand the contextof the observation data, includingthe number of observations and thenumber of people observed.Additionally, more frequentobservations increase the probabilitythat the level of safe behaviour willimprove, as people tend to alter theirbehaviour if they know someoneswatching. A variable feature is whocarries out the observations and how

often generally, if everyoneparticipates in observations, itpromotes a collective sense ofownership of the process.

- Data-driven decision-makingprocesses. The data from theobservation process allow you tomeasure safety performance. Youcan then examine trends in thesedata to identify the key operationalareas that need improvement. Itsthen possible to positively reinforce

employees safe behaviour whiletaking steps to correct unsafebehaviours.

- Organised improvementintervention. The plannedintervention often begins withbriefing sessions in those workareas and departments that will beinvolved. Then volunteer groups arebrought together, such as a steeringcommittee and observers, who thenreceive training in observation andfeedback techniques. The project

team oversees the development ofthe process in the organisation,from the initial analysis of accidentand incident data through tomonitoring performance, settinggoals and reviewing progress.

Business benefits

Partly through introducing abehavioural safety programme, onecompany achieved a 43 per centreduction in time lost to injuriesover two years and a 63 per centreduction in major issues over thecourse of a year.

(Source: HSE)


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- allowing the observers enoughtime to make their observations

- giving praise and recognition tostaff who work safely

- encouraging employees to reporthealth and safety concerns

- providing the resources and helpneeded for improvements

- promoting the initiative wheneverand wherever they can.

Figure 2 outlines the key stages insetting up a behavioural safetyprogramme.

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- Regular, focused feedback oncontinuing performance.Feedback is the key ingredient ofany type of improvement initiative.In behavioural safety systems,feedback usually takes three forms:verbal feedback to people at thetime of observation; visual feedbackon charts displayed in theworkplace; and weekly/monthlybriefings where detailed

observational data are providedabout specific employee behaviours.In combination, these forms offeedback provide a basis fortargeting focused improvements.

- A requirement for visiblecontinuing support frommanagers. Its vital that managersshow visible leadership andcommitment to the process. Theycan demonstrate this by:

Business benefits

Over seven years, one companyachieved zero lost-time incidents,a 50 per cent reduction in injuriescompared to hours worked, andimproved staff morale, partlythrough introducing a behaviouralsafety programme.

Observe peopleand measurewhat they do

Tell peoplethe results

Aim higher

Start

Decide whatbehaviours youwant to change

People changetheir behaviour

what you havemeasuredimproves

Figure 2: Implementation of a behavioural safety programme


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- Questions of programme suitability,including:- using an off the shelf solution

that may not suit the culture ofthe organisation

- inappropriate training materials- not involving all supervisors in

the process, leading some toabandon their responsibility forsafety

- using the programme to addressunrelated issues

- conflicts with payment andreward schemes.

Below are some key questions that youneed to consider before going aheadwith a behavioural programme. If youanswer yes to these, it suggests thatyour organisation may be ready for abehavioural safety intervention.- Are a significant number of

accidents or incidents caused by thebehaviour of front-line employees?

- Do most employees and managerswant to reduce the current accidentrate?

- Will managers be comfortable ifemployees become more involvedin health and safety?

- Do managers and employees trusteach other?

- Do managers accept their role inhealth and safety management?

- Does the organisation have enoughresources for the process (eg timefor training and observations)?

- Is the physical environment in theworkplace well controlled?

Behavioural safety programmes havemade a substantial contribution toimproving health and safetyperformance in several industrialsectors. But there can be problemswith introducing them, such as:13

- Workforce concerns, including:- issues about spying on co-

workers- seeing the programme as

another initiative that wont last- worries that workers will be

blamed for accidents- disagreements over safe

practices.- Management issues, including:

- not enough managementsupport for the approach

- expectations of a quick fix,leading to a loss of commitmentwhen improvements come moreslowly

- organisational changes that maylead to low morale and loss of

key players- autocratic management style- inconsistent behaviour of

managers when enforcing agreedsafety behaviours and rules.

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5 Making the choice is behavioural safety

the right tool?


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Check that employees have anappropriate level of knowledge andskills for their jobs are theycompetent?

Bring together a small group of people,including managers, supervisors andworkers, to:- discuss how behaviour influences

the organisations health and safetyperformance

- find out how much support there isfor a behavioural safety programme

- identify activities or tasks with at-risk behaviours

- develop ways of measuring safety-critical behaviours

- recruit and train observers- establish baselines- set realistic but challenging targets

for improvement- carry out observations, feed the

results back to employees asappropriate and review

- make sure staff stay involved in theprogramme by giving constructivefeedback on undesirable behaviourand praise for desirable behaviour

- use the data you gather from theprocess to improve performancefurther.

The case study on pages 1011 gives apractical example of how to implementa behavioural safety programme.

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6 Opting for a behavioural safety programme

what next?


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The study was carried out in aircraftmanoeuvring areas of a major UKairport for a US-based internationalairline, with approximately 400employees including support staff.

Procedure

Management briefingDuring the planning stages, linemanagers and HR staff received abriefing to explain the philosophybehind the behavioural approach,outlining their role and why theircommitment is important.

Developing measures of safetyperformanceThe company identified safety-criticalbehaviours from accident records andinterviews with key people. Theydeveloped measures for criticalbehaviours in three areas of concern:manual handling, vehicle operations

and general ramp safety.

Training the observers andobserving safety performanceInitially 35 observers were trained toobserve and measure their colleaguessafety performance and provide verbalfeedback. They represented bothmanagers and employees and weredrawn from all operations. The keyreasons for choosing them were thatthey were respected by their peers,

were committed to improving safetyand had good communication skills.The observations took around 20minutes and took place at differenttimes to make sure that they reflecteda true picture of safety performance.

Determining a baselineStraight after the observers were trained,they collected data for four days. Intotal, 60 snapshots of safetyperformance provided a baseline figurefor each of the three areas of concern.The company then set targets forimprovement on the basis of thesefigures.

Establishing improvement goalsAt the end of the baseline period, allobservers and representatives fromsenior management attended a goal-setting meeting. Here they decidedgoals that were challenging butachievable for improvements in safetyperformance across the three measuredcategories. They also discussed anybarriers to improvement identifiedduring the baseline observations.

Feedback and follow-upFollowing the goal setting, the

observers posted feedback chartsaround the ramp and gave shortPowerPoint presentations in staffrooms throughout the day and throughthe internal computer network.

On average, they carried out 110observations each month. Theydisplayed the results of theobservations every week and includedinformation on the issues that hadimproved the most and those that had

the worst scores.

More observers were trained to provideextra cover during busy periods andholidays, to replace observers who hadleft the programme and, moreimportantly, to cascade the programmethroughout the ramp operation.

Case study

Using a behavioural approach to improve safety

in aircraft manoeuvring areas

ResultsDuring the first 19 months, thepercentage of behaviour observed assafe increased from an average of 70per cent to 79 per cent (see Figure 3).Over the next five years, theprogramme evolved to address othersafety issues and received two groundhandling awards. The companysinsurers have also recognised theprogrammes importance throughreduced employers liability premiums.

ConclusionThis study shows that applying abehavioural approach to safety iseffective for ramp operations. Despiterecent economic trouble in the sector,the scheme had positive effects on safebehaviour, work methods,communication and industrial relations,as well as reducing the occurrence ofaccidents and related costs.

Source: United Airlines andHeathrow behavioural case study

2005 Robin Phillips CFIOSH(personal communication)


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Figure 3: Percentage improvement across the threeintervention categories in the case study

Percentage

safe

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Vehicle operationsManual handlingGeneral

Baseline

Intervention


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1 Health and Safety Executive.Reducing error and influencingbehaviour(HSG48).HSE Books,2003.

2 Fleming M. Safety culture maturitymodel(OTR 2009/049). HSE Books,2001.

3 Komaki J, Barwick K D and Scott LR. A behavioural approach tooccupational safety: pinpointingand reinforcing safe performance ina food manufacturing plant.Journalof Applied Psychology1978; 63 (4):434445.

4 Krause T R and Hidley J H.Behaviorally based safetymanagement: parallels with thequality improvement process.Professional Safety1989; 34 (10):2025.

5 Krause T R, Hidley J H and HodsonS J. The behaviour-based safetyprocess: managing involvement foran injury-free culture. Van Nostrand

Reinhold, 1990.6 Sulzer-Azaroff B. The modification

of occupational safety behaviour.Journal of Occupational Accidents1987; 9: 177197.

7 Duff A R, Robertson I T, Cooper MD and Phillips R A. Improving safetyon construction sites by changingpersonnel behaviour(HMSO ReportSeries CRR51/93). HMSO, 1993.

8 Robertson I T, Duff A R, Marsh T W,Phillips R A, Weyman A K andCooper M D. Improving safety onconstruction sites by changingpersonnel behaviour: phase two.HSE Books, 1999.

9 Cooper M D, Phillips R A,Sutherland V J and Makin P J.Reducing accidents using goal-setting and feedback: a field study.Journal of Occupational andOrganizational Psychology1994;67: 219240.

10 Finlayson L, Fishwick T and MortonA. Reducing accident rates thebehavioural approach. IChemE LossPrevention Bulletin August 1996:130; 36.

11 Vassie, L. A proactive team-basedapproach to continuousimprovement in health and safetymanagement. Employee Relations1998; 20 (6): 577593

12 Health and Safety Executive. The

business benefits of health andsafety case studies, 2005.www.hse.gov.uk/businessbenefits/casestudy.htm.

13 Keil Centre. Behaviour modificationto improve safety: literature review(OTR 2000/003). HSE Books, 2000.

12

References
http://www.hse.gov.uk/businessbenefits/casestudy.htmhttp://www.hse.gov.uk/businessbenefits/casestudy.htmhttp://www.hse.gov.uk/businessbenefits/casestudy.htmhttp://www.hse.gov.uk/businessbenefits/casestudy.htmhttp://www.hse.gov.uk/businessbenefits/casestudy.htm


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- Behavioural-Safety.com, 2005.www.behavioural-safety.com .

- Fleming M and Lardner R. Strategiesto promote safe behaviour as partof a health and safety managementsystem (CRR 430/2002). HSE Books,2002.

- Hopkins A. What are we to make ofsafe behaviour programs? SafetyScience 2006; 44: 583-597.

- IOSH. Promoting a positive culture:a guide to health and safety culture.IOSH, 2012. www.iosh.co.uk/positiveculture

- Krause T R. Employee-drivensystems for safe behaviour integrating behavioural andstatistical techniques. Van NostrandReinhold, 1995.

- Krause T R. The behaviour-basedsafety process: managinginvolvement for an injury-freeculture. Van Nostrand Reinhold,1996.

- Lunt J, Bates S, Bennett V,Hopkinson J. Behaviour change andworker engagement practiceswithin the construction sector(RR660). HSE Books, 2008.

- Ward J, Haslam C, Haslam R. Theimpact of health and safetymanagement on organisations andtheir staff. IOSH, 2008.

DVDs concerned with promoting safebehaviour in the workplace areavailable from:- Out-Takes

[email protected] + 44 (0)20 8289 2466www.outtakes.co.uk

- Human Focus [email protected] +44 (0)1737 246331http://safetyonlinecourse.co.uk/

As part of its Continuing ProfessionalDevelopment programme, IOSH offersthe following courses:- Introduction to behavioural safety

(one day)- Developing a behavioural-based

safety programme (two days)

For more information contact theProfessional Development team on+44 (0)116 257 3197.

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More information and resources
http://www.behavioural-safety.com/http://www.behavioural-safety.com/http://www.behavioural-safety.com/http://www.iosh.co.uk/positiveculturehttp://www.iosh.co.uk/positiveculturehttp://www.iosh.co.uk/positiveculturemailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://www.outtakes.co.uk/http://www.outtakes.co.uk/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://safetyonlinecourse.co.uk/http://safetyonlinecourse.co.uk/mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]://safetyonlinecourse.co.uk/http://www.outtakes.co.uk/http://www.iosh.co.uk/positiveculturehttp://www.behavioural-safety.com/


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