Page 33 - Occupational Health & Safety, September 2018

they’re taught. These are the first metrics you should take a look at when evaluating your training program.
You can then go into a more in-depth analysis by determining what percent of your employees’ training has expired. This will give you an idea of how many em- ployees need to be scheduled for retrain- ing. If this percentage gets too high, it’s an indication that you’re falling behind with scheduling training. If that’s the case, you might want to find additional technological resources or tools to streamline your sched- uling process.
You may also want to dig deeper into the specific courses that for one reason or another, too many employees are simply not attending on time. Put together a list of the top 10 courses that have the largest number of employees that are past due for training. The great advantage about this indicator is half the investigation is already done, as it tells you which classes are hav- ing an issue. All you need to do is figure out the cause and apply a fix. Even more importantly, if you see a training course on this list that is required for employees under OSHA’s training standards, you can prioritize this class ahead of the others so that you can prevent a citation nightmare if a compliance officer comes knocking!
Safety Suggestions and Hazards
It’s no small thing to get workers engaged in reporting close calls or unsafe conditions. If you’ve developed a safety culture in which employees are eager to share feedback on ways to make the workplace safer, then give yourself a big round of applause!
With that said, though, collecting this information is just the first step. Next, you’ll need a way to confirm that the data are actually being reviewed and that open issues are being corrected. If an employee sees a hazard that he reported lingering in the workplace for weeks without any reso- lution or communication from manage- ment, this might deter him from provid- ing input in the future.
To make sure that safety concerns and hazards are being addressed, you’ll want to calculate and monitor the following metrics:
■ What percentage of identified haz- ards have been closed this month?
■ How many assigned corrective ac- tions are coming due or are overdue this month at your location?
■ What percentage of corrective ac- tions are being completed on time?
Depending on how you’re currently tracking your organization’s safety data, calculating key performance indicators may be easier said than done. If you’re feel- ing a little overwhelmed, it may be time to re-evaluate your current safety manage- ment system. It’s difficult to identify and solve critical safety issues when your tools just aren’t up to the task.
One of the easiest ways to monitor safety metrics is by using a safety manage- ment software. As you improve your safety performance analysis, you’ll need a system that can handle the influx of data, give you access to real-time metrics, and help you glean valuable insights hidden within the flood of information.
Utilizing a safety software will help your organization to collect data more efficiently than a manual process. One of the biggest perks of using safety software to record and analyze your safety activity is that you’ll be able to quickly access your data all from one convenient source, so you won’t have to go digging through multiple spreadsheets or files to find the stats you’re looking for.
Finally, as you experiment, remember to think big but start small. Through trial and error, you can identify other indica- tors that you’ll want to review. As long as you’ve laid the groundwork by establish- ing effective processes for collecting and reviewing your data, you’ll be able to eas- ily add other metrics to your analysis as your needs change.
Clare A. Epstein is Chief Operating Of- ficer of IndustrySafe, Inc. She oversees the IndustrySafe Safety Management Software and has assisted numerous organizations in improving their safety data analysis. Indus- trySafe (industrysafe.com) is a web-based and user-friendly software utilized by nu- merous organizations throughout North America to maintain regulatory compliance and develop safety management strategies that positively impact the bottom line.
www.ohsonline.com
WORLD’S MOST ADVANCED
PID
Until now, photoionization detectors were expensive and their use was limited.
No longer — we partnered with Ion Science, the global PID sensor leader, to deliver the most affordable VOC detector.
Lifetime sensor warranty Less cleaning
Plug-and-play cartridges Zero downtime
Easy deployment
Part of G7 Insight
Live compliance dashboard Blackline Analytics
Map your gas leaks
1-877-869-7212
sales@blacklinesafety.com www.BlacklineSafety.com
Circle 12 on card.
29
INDUSTRYSAFE, INC.