Accountability ensures that your workplace health and safety program is implemented as intended. If no one is held accountable for their participation in the program, safety won’t be treated as a legitimate business objective (as efficiency and profitability are). If your health and safety program has goals, they need to be set as real expectations that are visible to the entire organization. Here are some tips for keeping up accountability for your workplace health and safety program.

1. Create a Team: For sizable organizations, it can be quite difficult to hold all employees accountable for the effective implementation of your program. You should talk to employees and see who is interested in improving health and safety conditions at your workplace. Assemble a team that will be responsible for implementing and monitoring the program. Assign individuals with specific tasks and hold them accountable for making sure they get done.
2. Set Expectations: Don’t be vague about the goals of your health and safety program. Set realistic, measurable expectations and check in on progress regularly. For example, if one of your program goals is to reduce workplace injuries, set a realistic percentage that you want to see reduced from the current injury rate.
3. Create a Timeline: Create a timeline for when you expect measurable goals to be accomplished and check in with your health and safety program team regularly to ensure that the organization is on track.
4. Make Goals Visible: If health and safety objectives aren’t visible to the entire company, it’s hard to hold anyone accountable for them. Make sure that everyone is expected by not only management but also by their coworkers to play their role in carrying out the program.
5. Reward Performance: Publicly reward employees who make significant contributions to the health and safety program to encourage others to help out.

Use these tips to increase health and safety accountability in your workplace and ensure that your program is implemented as effectively as possible. Contact United Alliance Services for information on creating a health and safety program, employee training sessions, and more. We offer a wide range of services that focus on improving health and safety in a variety of industries.

Read the previous Steps:

Step 1: Developing an Effective Health and Safety Program: Step 1: Leadership

Step: Developing an Effective Health and Safety Program: Step 2: Communication and Awareness

Step 3: Developing an Effective Health and Safety Program: Step 3: Tracking Trends & Effectiveness