One Decision

One Decision Safety Talk

A large number of companies set goals for safety in their workplaces. For many companies, the goal is to have their first-ever zero-injury year; for other companies, it is to finish the year out with no injuries so they can celebrate their fifth-year injury-free. No matter what the goal is, the truth is that it takes careful preparation, commitment, and major effort to achieve an injury-free workplace over time.

Creating a Safe Workplace that Results in Fewer Injuries

Every single day a lot of time and effort is spent on ensuring workplaces are safe. That being said, even if a company invests in the safest equipment, the highest quality PPE, and top-of-the-line training, much effort still needs to occur to ensure the workplace is actually “safe.”

This is because so much of achieving safety depends on the decisions made by the employees who work there. Even the most careful worker can create risk through a single poor choice made.

Issues that Can Lead to Poor Decision Making

Humans are flawed, and so is our decision-making process, even on a good day. There is an endless list of issues, challenges, or reasons that can cause any of us not to make the correct choice at a given moment. Here are some common issues individuals can be dealing with that can negatively impact decision-making:

• Complacency
• Overconfidence
• Lack of knowledge
• Lack of focus
• Time pressures
• Fatigue
• Illness
• The list goes on and on

All it Takes is One Decision

There are many companies that have achieved a safe workplace and have sustained it for an extended period of time. As stated above, it takes effort on everyone’s part to achieve this. Many decisions and actions had to be taken to ensure safety measures were taken during every single work task. All the effort to work safely can be undermined at any given point by a poor decision made by one person.

Summary

While it is true that one poor decision can result in a serious injury, the same can be said for working safely. To sustain an injury-free workplace over time, it takes one decision at a time to complete work safely. Focus on the task at hand and what actions need to be taken to ensure it can be done the correct way.

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