Incentives for safety—success in another dimension

Today’s incentive program is more likely to include rank-and-file employees in creating and managing the program rather than making announcements and handing out materials without worker participation.

According to national construction consultant Ron Prichard, Ph.D., companies should plan safety incentives that give as much attention to work conditions as to worker behavior. Most work-related injuries result from some combination of unsafe conditions, procedures, and action, he says. It’s almost never totally the employee’s fault.

A roadblock in incentive programs is that giving workers a reward in exchange for costing the company less in work-related injury costs can appear to be a bribe. Even the need for peer approval can lead workers to hide an injury to avoid breaking a perfect safety record and disappointing fellow employees.

Incentives programs for health and safety are, at best, complex and hard to manage, Prichard said. Pitfalls lurk everywhere and can undermine the desired outcome. At worst, he warns, these type of programs reward the wrong kinds of behavior and distract management attention from other, high value actions.

When combined with effective training and when they are focused on specific areas needing attention within the business, incentives can have a positive, measurable impact on improving safety practices.

In other words, if you need return-on-investment numbers to justify organizing and managing an incentive program at your business, you’ll probably have trouble finding them. If the programs boost morale and help employees learn safety rules that apply to them, that can be enough of a benefit in today’s high-stress work environment.

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