A safety climate is the shared set of perceptions and expectations that workers have regarding safety in their organisation at any given time. But how does this safety climate affect how workers approach their day-to-day work, and any health and safety concerns that may arise? The literature says the impact is significant.

A 2005 study found workers with a negative perception of safety climate were more likely to engage in unsafe acts, which in turn increased the likelihood of an accident¹.

Employees may have all the training and equipment necessary to complete their job safely, however, over time, they will begin to cut corners and become complacent, without sufficient accountability. Similarly, the same study found workers who perceived job insecurity, anxiety and stress within their organisation, experienced a drop in safety motivation and compliance, and recorded a higher accident rate.

Such a negative safety climate can quickly become toxic, and can greatly increase the risk of incidents. If workers don’t consider safety an organisational priority, then they are unlikely to treat it as such.

A 2018 survey of Australian workers found one in ten were afraid to report a safety breach over fears it would cost them their job, and one in five said they had made a safety complaint that was never acted on. Furthermore, an alarming 17 percent of respondents said a colleague had been fired after being hurt in the workplace².

At the time, Safe Work Australia Special Advisor Dr Peta Miller laid the blame on employers, telling the ABC that organisations needed to foster workplace cultures that encouraged workers to speak up.

“Our evidence is showing us that, in fact, most workers will speak up if a positive organisational culture is created, where workers views are respected and listened to.”

This is backed up by the research – a negative safety climate can be reversed when management implements a top-to-bottom safety focus.

Once workers trust that safety is an organisational priority, they begin to take ownership of safety-related issues, and a culture of safety begins to form. And the benefits that come from that are significant.

The same 2005 study found workers with a positive perception of their workplace safety registered fewer accidents. This study also found that safe work behaviours were directly linked to whether an employee thought their employer was concerned about their wellbeing.

In 2007, Canadian Institute for Work and Health scientist Dr Phil Bigelow said safety climate was directly related to safety performance. Bigelow said organisations that conducted internal safety climate surveys found it was an effective way to predict workplace injury.

Safety climate has enormous potential to improve a company’s health and safety performance and reduce workplace injury rates.

“If a company routinely monitored its safety climate, it could lead to sustainable improvements in occupational health and safety (OHS) performance.”

¹University of Helsinki, Workers’ Perceptions of Workplace Safety and Job Satisfaction, 2005
²Shine Lawyers, Health and Safety Survey, 2018

What is HSE Software and How Does myosh Work?

myosh is a cloud based workplace health and safety platform that works with you and your team.

Schedule an Online Demo

myosh is fast and fully configurable HSE Software that is easy to use and adapt for any Industries.

Over 50 configurable modules integrate to collect HSEQ data.

Modules are used to manage hazards, investigate incidents, manage risk, conduct audits and much more.

Our mobile app is used for fast data capture in the field, online or offline.  Features include QR code scanning, digital signatures, Geo Locations and Geo Fencing, pdf export and more. You can configure mobile forms, visibility and functionality in your Administration panel

The myosh Dashboard provides powerful organisational insight by transforming your hseq data into intelligent visual charts, marps and tables.  Up to date data is derived from modules and displayed in an interactive visual format, configured specifically for you and your team.

myosh is built on the Viking PaaS, a super configurable platform with powerful capabilities. Teams can quickly and easily configure the platform to their own very unique end to end process requirements.

We encourage you to treat your software technology like a team member. The myosh academy is designed to empower your team with the skills to ensure they use their software tools productively.  Everyone learns differently, so the academy holds a variety of resources including videos, guided learning and verified online learning courses for each myosh module.

Your investment in myosh helps you and your team manage risk, compliance and improve workplace health and safety.  Today, successful organisations view safety as an asset, and health and safety spending as an investment. This is because a safe workplace adds measurable business value, and can drive tangible improvements in performance, profit, and culture.

Ask our team for an online demonstration today.

More resources

The Facts and The Figures

Organisations are constantly reminded that health and safety failure is expensive. And whilst this is certainly true, there are benefits to health and safety success that go beyond cost-avoidance. Today, successful organisations view safety as an asset, and health and safety spending as an investment.

Download the report and discover the tangible and measurable benefits that health and safety initiatives can have on:

• Organisational Productivity
• Safety Climate
• Insurance
• Reputation
• The Bottom Line

myosh Academy

Your investment in myosh helps you and your team manage risk, compliance and improve workplace health and safety.

We encourage you to treat your software technology like a team member.  The myosh Academy is designed to empower your team with Knowledge, Skills, Tips and FAQS, and to ensure they use their software tools productively.

• Watch videos
• View FAQs
• Take online courses
• Read articles
• Stay informed with myosh Updates