We have all heard the phrases “Safety is a Priority” and “Safety First.” These are probably the most common safety slogans found in the workplace and voiced by people in leadership positions.

No wonder most leaders are surprised when now they are told that safety shouldn’t be a priority.

Let’s think about this as we walk through a typical workday morning. We all follow a prioritized agenda, often a standard routine, before traveling to work.  Some people eat a hearty breakfast, read the morning newspaper, take a shower and wash the dishes. 

Others even wake up early enough to go for a morning jog before work. Some grab a roll and a cup of coffee and leave their home in disarray until they get back in the evening.

In each of these scenarios the agenda — the priorities — are different. Yet there is one common activity. It’s not a priority, but rather a basic value. Do you know what it is?

One morning you wake up late. Perhaps your alarm clock failed. You have only 15 minutes to prepare for work. Your morning routine changes drastically. Priorities must be rearranged.

You might skip breakfast, a shower or a shave. Yet every morning’s schedule still has one item in common. It’s not a priority that can be dropped from a routine due to time constraints or a new agenda. 

No, this particular morning activity represents a value that we’ve been taught as infants and it’s never compromised.

Have you guessed it by now? Yes. This common link in everyone’s morning routine, regardless of time constraints is “getting dressed.”

This simple scenario shows how circumstances can alter behavior and priorities. 

Actually, labeling behavior a “priority” implies that its order in a hierarchy of daily activities can be rearranged. How often does this happen at work? Does safety sometimes take a “back seat” when the emphasis is on the mission or some other important task?  Isn’t that why Operational Risk Management (ORM) was institutionalized in the Navy?

Making safety a value is much easier said than done. How do you even begin to work for such lofty aims? How about establishing a set of comprehensive principles on which to base safety procedures and policies?

The following general components are necessary to enhance our ‘Safety Value’. 

All hands involvement: Commitment from the top down to safety in and out of the workplace. When everyone is responsible for their own — and workers in your crew — safety, the program grows.

Comprehensive worksite analysis: We must know the hazards we are exposed to.  There are many ways we are notified. By being in tune to daily conditions and changes in our workplace, not just check before a safety inspection, we enhance our own safety.

Control and prevention of hazards: By being aware of the hazards around us, we can take the appropriate measures to protect ourselves.  It is always better to make the area safe for the worker than the worker safe for the area.

Robust safety and health training: By having a robust training plan, we can make people aware of hazards before they begin tasks; a knowledgeable workforce is a strong — and safe — workforce.  We can ensure that our methods of controlling hazards are effective.

In order for the four ‘elements’ of a dynamic safety culture listed above to succeed, we need support from the chain of command. We have the strong support of our upper chain of command. 

NAS Whidbey Island is striving to attain OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) “Star Site” certification. The four ‘elements’ we’ve just discussed apply to everyone who works, visits or does business at the base. 

We work safely not because it’s required by law, but because it’s the right thing to do.