How to Create and Sustain a Safety Culture That Makes a Difference

Contractors with a strong safety culture have a shared commitment to keeping everyone on the job safe. That commitment starts at the top and flows through the entire workforce.

While protecting workers is the biggest potential benefit of a safety-first mindset, it’s not the only one. Employees who feel safe may be more productive, more likely to stay with your company and more likely to recruit others. A company culture that prioritizes safety also helps ensure compliance with OSHA regulations and could reduce costs related to workers' compensation claims and insurance premium increases.

To build and maintain a strong safety culture, consider these tips.

Encourage senior management to champion safety

When top executives are directly and actively involved in a company’s safety program and committed to its success, the company’s TRIR (total recordable incident rate) and DART (days away, restricted or transferred) scores drop by more than 50%, according to the 2024 Safety Performance Report from Associated Builders and Contractors.

Best practices that owners and chief executives of successful companies implement, according to the report, include:

• Integrating safety into performance appraisals and other company operations
• Tracking and annually reviewing safety goals and objectives
• Instilling personal accountability for safety throughout the company
• Committing resources such as money, personnel, equipment and supplies

Ensure project leaders keep a focus on safety

Superintendents and foremen need to model the safe behavior they want to see from others. Not wearing earplugs on noisy worksites could signal to crews that hearing protection isn’t important, for example.

Project leaders should also take corrective actions—and potentially, disciplinary ones—when they see workers who are not following safety procedures. Another way leaders reflect a safety culture is by advocating for their workers’ well-being, such as by ensuring that everyone has personal protection equipment that fits properly.

Regularly communicate safety protocols

New-hire orientation is the perfect time to stress that safety is a core value of your company. It’s also an opportunity to take a deep dive into your safety policies and procedures.

Keep the conversation going for all employees with frequent and mandatory toolbox talks. These brief safety meetings can reduce complacency. The ABC report found that companies that conduct daily toolbox talks reduce TRIR and DART by 81% compared to those that hold monthly talks. 

For each new project, create a site-specific safety plan, and present the plan during construction site inductions. More than 70% of contractors report that creating a health and safety plan before construction begins leads to increased worker engagement with safety and reduced recordable injury rates, according to the Safety Management in the Construction Industry 2023 report from Dodge Construction Network. 

Invest in safety training

Formal safety training courses, whether taken online or in person, can equip workers with the knowledge they need to keep themselves and their co-workers safe. Support continuous learning, rather than one-time training, to help employees feel confident working with new equipment and technology.

Pairing workers on the front lines with mentors who are up to date on industry best practices and technological advancements is another smart strategy. Safety procedures are the most common focus of mentorship programs, according to the Dodge report.

Give employees a voice

Workers are more likely to “buy in” to a culture of safety when they can contribute to it without fear of negative repercussions. Encourage workers to speak up if they get hurt or see a potential hazard, unsafe behavior or near miss. While crew members should feel comfortable discussing concerns with their supervisors, a hotline or other anonymous reporting mechanism can further encourage timely feedback.

You can go a step further by granting workers stop-work authority, which gives them the right to stop work if they believe a task presents an imminent danger to them or to others on the job.

Including workers in your efforts to continuously improve your safety procedures can be invaluable as well. In an article on how a positive safety culture can reduce risk in construction, the professional services firm Marsh notes that “risk controls developed with employee input are more likely to be effective and more likely to be adopted in practice.”

Recognize and reward workers who embody safety

Acknowledging employees who exemplify safe behaviors can further motivate them and their co-workers to prioritize safety. A shout-out during a shift or company-wide meeting can be meaningful. A financial award can send an even stronger message about how much your company values safety.

Creating a strong safety culture through these strategies and others can benefit your workers and your company. Getting everyone aligned on safety won’t necessarily be quick or easy, but is there a more worthwhile pursuit? 

Keep your workers up to date on training and certifications through courses offered by United Academy.