Overview

The actions of people contribute to nearly all work-related injuries. Traditional safety programmes focus on improving working conditions or changing employee attitudes to prevent accidents. Understanding the relationship between behaviours and accident prevention is essential to a continuous safety improvement process. Long term, continuous improvement in safety is dependent upon motivating desired safe behaviours.

The Safe Behavior Observation Programme is an employee-driven process in which employees utilise checklists outlining critical safe behaviours to conduct observations of their peers. A database is used to collect information about the observations. Data from the observation process is then used to identify barriers to desired safe behaviours.

Implementing and Maintaining Effective Behaviour Based Safety (BBS) programmes.
Good BBS programmes play a key part in driving safety performance and developing a safety culture. The success of BBS programmes depends on commitment to implementing them and supporting them at the site/business level - this requires leadership at the site/business level making BBS a priority.

1. What is needed for successful implementation of BBS?

• The basics of hazard identification and management, standard operating procedures, training, and incident investigation are in place
• Management support
• Employee support
• Employee participation and involvement