Industrial Management

MAR-APR 2014

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march/april 2014 17 assessment as part of the hiring process. For each group, safety data were collected for a two-year period. The analysis controlled for job experience, and the organization's safety orientation and training programs were essentially the same for both groups of employees. As shown in Figure 4, the results indicated that individuals hired using the safety risk assessment had signifi- cantly fewer safety incident rates (24 percent) compared to employees who had been hired through the previous system (38 percent), which did not screen for safety. More importantly, Figure 5 illustrates that the OSHA recordable injury rate for those hired using the assessment was nearly half (9 percent) the rate of those hired without the assessment (17 percent). This repre- sents nearly a 50 percent reduction in recordable injuries over a two-year period. This result is comparable to the best performing injury and illness prevention programs in the United States. Based on OSHA data, the best reduction percentage typically achieved is slightly more than 60 percent, while many programs result in less than a 10 percent decrease in injuries. A reduction in injury rates of the magnitude observed in this field study can lead to significant cost savings for an organization, especially since the average total cost of a worker's compensation claim is about $40,000 and more than half of all recordable injuries result in lost time, restricted duty or job transfers. Applying those estimates to this particular case, the organization saved as much as $2.16 million in direct and indirect costs from injuries prevented by screening out high-risk candidates. Putting it all together As an increasing number of safety profes- sionals and company executives now realize, safety is a journey rather than an actual destination. There is no magic pill or simple solution that will improve safety performance instantaneously. Organizations must use multiple tools, systems and processes to improve safety continuously. Understanding and using safety DNA effectively is a powerful tool that can help close the gap further toward zero injuries. As evidence for safety DNA continues to grow, organizations have an opportunity to use this powerful new technology as a unique leading indicator of exposure to improve the safety of their current workforce and hire safer employees. The research strongly indicates that individual psychological factors are associated with the likelihood of injury. Further, these factors can be measured in an accurate and reliable way that helps predict future injuries and improve the safety proclivity of new hires. By truly aligning employee devel- opment and selection systems to the organization's safety objectives, significant strides can be made not only in injury rate reduction, but in overall exposure levels and safety performance as well. v Applying those estimates to this particular case, the organization saved as much as $2.16 million. NEWER AND BETTER Figure 4. Employees hired under a new regimen that assessed safety risks were less likely to suffer work injuries than those who were hired without considering safety DNA. BETTER HIRING = FEWER OSHA PROBLEMS Figure 5. Taking safety DNA into account helped one organization hire employees who were much less likely to suffer an OSHA recordable injury. IM MarApr 2014.indd 17 3/24/14 12:13 PM

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