Production vs. Safety: The Truth Behind the Myth
Next time you find yourself rushing, ask yourself if it was really because of circumstances beyond your control or another's unexpected action.
- By Larry Wilson
- Jan 01, 2019
Have you ever noticed that, compared to when you were nine years old, the “quality” of your rationalizations has improved dramatically?
When your teenage son tells you that the lawn is not cut because he was worried the noise might frighten the cat, you might well remember saying something equally flimsy to your parents as an excuse.
But you make excuses, too. Have you ever told a cop who caught you speeding that some imaginary misunderstanding pushed the pedal to the metal? And it worked, as you later boast to your friends, because he let you off with just a warning.
(Imagine if you told the truth: "Officer, the reason I'm speeding is because I wanted to get there faster and, to be honest, I don't really ever do the speed limit." Not likely!)
Consider the difference: Excuses when we were young rarely worked, now they often seem to do the trick. It's as though our excuses went through some sort of evolutionary process and the ones that didn't work simply died off. Only the good ones, the ones that worked, survived.
I've been a behavior-based safety consultant for 33 years. I have made more than 5,000 safety observations at refineries, pulp and paper mills, railroads, shipyards, pharmaceutical companies, chemical companies, oil rigs, construction sites, assembly operations, manufacturing sites, utility companies, head office buildings and national research facilities: that is only a sample.
Far and away, the number one excuse for safety lapses that I hear is, "for production."
Really? Funny I didn't see you actually running instead of walking "for production." (But let's face it, running all the time is hard work, especially if it's part of everyday operations!) How long does it really take to put a seat belt on when you're driving a fork truck? Three whole seconds? How long does it take to put a fall arrest harness on? Longer than three seconds, but if a million dollars was riding on it, could you have it on in just a few minutes?
This article originally appeared in the January/February 2019 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.