Structure: Build Muscle on Strong Bones – Part 10

Get Home Safely

Structure for Safety. Nolan Painting has always wanted to make sure its employees got home safely. The bigger the company, the more difficult it becomes to ensure that safety is happening. So, we spend a lot of time and energy talking about safety.

We needed help. A few years ago, we had somebody fall from a ladder, tumble down a hill, and break his back. It was devastating. The employee used a 12-foot orchard ladder – a very dangerous and unstable ladder. I don’t understand why we owned such a thing, but we did. My employee used it, lost his balance, and fell off and down an embankment.

OSHA investigated. They slapped us with a serious violation. Later, I learned that orchard ladders are different from painting ladders. They are used on soft ground instead of hard surfaces. At that point, I realized that my employee hadn’t made a mistake; I had made the mistake. I owned a piece of equipment we didn’t know how to use safely. I felt terrible.

When I realized this was my fault, I admitted it to OSHA and hired a safety manager. I told OSHA that I had made a mistake in owning an unsafe piece of equipment, and that I needed to put more resources into safety and was going to hire a safety manager. The OSHA officer presiding over the hearing favored my response; she removed the serious violation. I didn’t expect that.

Recently, we hired a safety manager, Hernan, to help us with our safety program. He’s great! Hernan is our safety structure! With him in place, the right things are happening to keep people safe. He’s friendly and supportive; he is not out to get people. He’s out to promote safety.

When people are safe, you can stay focused on growing strong.

See you Thursday. Build muscle.