The Work Environment Specialist and also the Head of the Department cannot be aware of everything that happens in the work environment.
However, it is certain that things happen in the work environment that can result in work accidents or illnesses caused by work. It is important that employees know what an incident is and that they should also be reported.
However, how to motivate and involve employees in reporting incidents, because it also requires extra effort on their part.
The Fear of Being Punished Must be Taken Down
The most important thing is to reassure employees that if they report incidents that are caused by themselves, they will not be punished.
Rather, the aim is to collect statistics and take action to prevent these situations in the future.
The employee’s mistake can also be due to the fact that the work process is inconvenient and the employee is looking for a more convenient solution. That is natural and logical.
It Must be Clearly Communicated "Why" and "How" Incidents Need to be Reported
While it may be quite self-evident why incidents need to be reported, it still needs to be talked over. In the same way, it is necessary to discuss how and to whom to report about dangerous situations.
It is particularly important to give examples of what has happened in your organization and what the consequences would have been if this had happened.
Motivation Package
I put it with a question mark because it causes conflicting feelings both in me and probably in some readers.
On the one hand, putting an award on the person who reports the most incidents could make people more noticeable, but on the other hand, it could lead to a situation where simply notifying a situation that is not really dangerous is reported.
Despite the fact that the motivation package leads to a lot of informing about inappropriate situations, it still makes people look for and notice dangerous situations.
This, in turn, will be implemented quietly into employees 'usual behavior' and at some point real dangerous situations will be noticed and reported.
If the employees understand why something is being done and the system is well thought out, the contribution of the employees will give you a very good and clear overview of the main possible causes of accidents at work, occupational diseases and work-related illnesses and you can deal with prevention.
