Make Safety a Habit

North American Occupational Health and Safety (NAOSH) Week was held May 7-13, 2017. It marks the importance of preventing injury and illness in the workplace and is recognized in Canada, the United States and Mexico.

Make Safety a Habit was this year’s theme. Safe work habits are important for every individual. We also have a responsibility to encourage safe work habits in our work teams. Safe work habits include understanding and following established safe work procedures but also anticipating what might go wrong and taking actions to avoid potential hazards.

Creating a safe work environment also means learning from our mistakes. That is why reporting incidents and injuries are important. Accurate reporting allows us to investigate the cause of incidents and to take action
to prevent them from reoccurring. This is not about laying blame but ensuring that we make adjustments to reduce risk.

You are in the best position to create a safe work environment. If you think there is a safer way of performing a task or a new procedure that would address a potential risk then we want to hear from you. Working together we can create safer work habits and a safer workplace.

I would like to take the opportunity to express my gratitude to each of you who serve or have served as a member of an Occupational Health and Safety Committee and particularly those who Chair these committees. Our OHS Committees are comprised of staff volunteers who take on these roles over and above their regular duties. If you’ve never served on the OHS committee at your site, I encourage you to think about doing so and to discuss it with your supervisor. Your contribution will make a difference.

Let’s always remember to make safety a habit at Bethany. With appreciation for all that you do every day to create safe workplaces and caring communities at Bethany.

– Jennifer McCue, President & CEO