8 signs management isn’t aligned with your safety culture

Your company culture plays a crucial role in the success of your safety initiatives. Despite implementing policies, procedures, and training, it will be challenging to achieve lasting results if stakeholders aren’t committed to creating a safer workplace.

While executives can influence the culture, it’s ultimately the responsibility of the management team to shape it. The attitudes and compliance toward your safety initiatives are greatly influenced by their direct managers, making it crucial to align them with your goals.

Recognizing the signs that your management team isn’t on board will help you adjust your program and communication efforts accordingly. Here are eight common indicators of a lack of alignment with your safety culture.

1. A lack of engagement

If managers aren’t actively participating in training, leading toolbox talks, observing new rules, and explaining their importance, it’s unlikely there will be significant changes to your safety culture or incident rates.

2. Unsafe behaviors

Managers who don’t practice safe working methods themselves won’t be taken seriously by their subordinates.

3. Negative employee feedback

Gathering feedback from workers throughout the year to assess their attitudes toward safety is important. If employees express concerns about their managers’ commitment to safety, it indicates a lack of alignment.

4. Poor communication

While you may use safety software to disseminate information, it’s management’s responsibility to relay updates and requirements to workers. If constant reminders are necessary, it suggests a lack of support from management.

5. Low time commitment

Training may require time, but it should be seen as an investment if it helps reduce incident rates. Managers who don’t dedicate team members’ time to training sessions may not fully understand the importance of consistent safety training.

6. Budgetary disagreements

While different teams may have different priorities, a safety-focused organization shouldn’t have significant disagreements regarding the need for personal protective equipment, hazardous machinery maintenance, and other safety-related expenses. If managers resist or fail to see the importance of safety spending, they may not be on board with the culture you’re trying to create.

7. A stubborn mindset

A resistance to change and clinging to traditional methods don’t contribute to productivity or workers’ safety. Safety improvements require open-mindedness and a willingness to embrace new methods. If your management team exhibits a stubborn resistance to change, they may not be aligned with your safety culture.

8. Lack of results

Ultimately, one of the most telling signs of a misaligned management team is the lack of improvement in incident rates, low worker morale, and increasing injury-related expenses. Consulting your leadership and getting them on board with your safety culture is crucial for positive change. While changing your company culture isn’t easy, it is possible.

In conclusion, taking steps to get your management team on board with your safety goals and creating a culture of safety is vital to achieving lasting change and improving worker safety. Though it may not be easy, with effort and commitment, it is possible to align management with your safety culture and create a safer workplace.