Estimates have shown that for every lost time injury that results in three or more days, there have been more than dozens of prior non-injury incidents. So, why don’t workers report more near misses so there are fewer serious injuries?
A recent article in the May issue of the American Society of Safety Engineers’ journal, Professional Safety, “Near-Miss Reporting — a Missing Link in Safety Culture”, explains and explores reasons why workers don’t report near-misses and how to overcome those obstacles.
The article written by Caterpillar Safety Services senior safety consultant Mike Williamsen, lists eight unique barriers to near-miss reporting:
- The status quo factor: People grow comfortable with how things are and don’t bother to change.
- Fear of punishment and retaliation: Even if there is no prior history of retaliation at your workplace, it must be reinforced verbally and through examples that there will be no punishment