Behavioural safety is of paramount importance to workers in the workplace. Without safe practices at the workplace, chances of injuries are higher, with increased possibility of death in more severe cases. Hence, behavioural safety plays a vital role in safeguarding the life and limbs of the workers. Implementation of good safety behaviour amongst the workers will help prevent accidents at the workplace.

Easier said than done, inculcating a safety culture is an uphill task because it requires the workers’ buy-in or a change in their belief in the value of safety. It will require a united effort, from the line managers to the top management.

It is natural for humans to take short-cuts at work, leading to unsafe practices in order to quickly complete the job assigned. Even though there are safety devices or safety management in place to prevent accidents, the first onset to prevent such unsafe acts is to raise awareness on the dangers to change their behaviours. If they realise that performing such unsafe acts will lead to injuries or death, then it will subconsciously, deter them from doing it. Knowledge thus plays a crucial aspect in the inculcation of a good safety behaviour. Through safety education and trainings, such safety behaviour can be embedded in these workers.

This article is contributed by Rosman Abdul Halek from the School of Safety & Environmental Management.