PLC Loggers Voice Summer 2017

Safety First
Ted Clark, CLCS, Loss Control Consultant, Acadia Insurance
When I was new to the construction industry, I
participated in many trainings similar to the PLC Spring
Safety Training as a student. At the conclusion of these
trainings, I typically found myself feeling more frustrated
than educated. The information was always useful and
relevant but I always found myself leaving the class saying,
“Wow, my company is so far behind with our safety
program that we will never come into compliance.” This
would result in my knee-jerk reaction of developing an
action plan that involved making drastic changes to
operations overnight. These changes, that looked so good
on paper, would last a week (at best), and we would wind
up going right back to doing things the way we had always
done them.
Rome wasn’t built in a day
Rome wasn’t built in a day
where your biggest exposures lie and SLOWLY implement
SMALL changes to affect those. When implemented over
time, small changes will typically yield much more
effective results for the long haul. Then, as those changes
start to become habit, add a couple more small changes and
continue this pattern until you have developed a safety
program that is effective and lasting.
Conclusion
In the wake of the spring training sessions, it’s easy
to get caught in the trap of trying to implement major
changes quickly. While it may seem that this is the only
way to improve upon company safety programs, I believe
the most effective programs will be built through a series of
small changes accomplished over a period of time.
It took me taking on the task of dismantling and
rebuilding a safety program before I realized that, like so
many other projects worth doing, you can build a safety
program quickly or you can build an effective safety
program that will last, but you cannot do both. Even the
best companies out there with seemingly unlimited budgets
don’t build their safety programs overnight. The fact is,
good safety programs take years to build and require that
you not only change policies but also change human
behavior.
The opinions expressed in this article are personal to
the author and may or may not express the views of
Acadia Insurance. This material is for informational
purposes only, and readers should utilize their own
individual professional judgment in implementing
sound risk management practices and procedures.
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time
Human behavior tends to be rooted in years of
habit and therefore is tremendously challenging to change.
Where I fell short at the beginning of my construction
career was this: I wanted to change things immediately. I
encourage you to learn from my mistakes. Take the time to
evaluate your program, and then select two to three areas
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