Behavior-Oriented Safety Initiative To: "E - All WRD Employees" From: "Catherine L Hill, ACH/Operations, Reston, VA" Cc: "Robert M Hirsch, Chief Hydrologist, Reston, VA" , "Catherine L Hill, ACH/Operations, Reston, VA" , "Janet N Arneson, Secretary (Typing), Reston, VA" , "Melvin Lew, Hydrologist, Reston, VA" , "Alice C Dilandro, Secretary (S), Reston, VA" Subject: Behavior-Oriented Safety Initiative Date: Wed, 08 Jul 1998 13:39:41 -0400 In Reply Refer To: Mail Stop 405 MEMORANDUM July 8, 1998 To: All WRD Employees From: Robert M. Hirsch /signed by Catherine L. Hill/ Chief Hydrologist Subject: Behavior-Oriented Safety Initiative I would like to call your attention to the attached memorandum from Barbara J. Ryan, Associate Director for Operations, thanking the Division Chiefs for achieving one of the lowest lost-time accident rates in the Department of the Interior. I would like to express my gratitude to all Water Resources Division employees that have helped to provide a proactive safe working environment by practicing safety first, every job, every time. I encourage everyone to continue the good work. If you have any questions please contact your regional safety officer. Attachment Attachment United States Department of the Interior U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY Office of the Director Reston, Virginia 20192 MEMORANDUM To: Division Chiefs From: Barbara Ryan/Associate Director for Operations Subject: Behavior-Oriented Safety Initiative I would like to take this opportunity to thank you and your staffs for the efforts to date, which have resulted in the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) achieving one of the lowest lost-time accident rates in the Department of the Interior (DOI). And, I want to endorse and provide to you the attached behavior-oriented safety initiative introduced by John Berry, Assistant Secretary--Policy, Management and Budget. This initiative seeks to reduce accidents even further by identifying primary accident causal factors among employees in identified high incidence occupations who typically perform their jobs alone or in small, independent workgroups. Within the USGS, the primary focus of this initiative will be on hydrologic and biologic technicians, although motor vehicle operators, laborers, and maintenance personnel are among the 11 occupations within the DOI to be included in this project. Behavior Science Technology (BST) personnel will be collecting data through onsite employee interviews and employee surveys. By determining associated organizational and behavioral barriers that inhibit safe job performance, BST will customize behavior-oriented models for implementation throughout the DOI. Shortly, employees in the targeted occupations will be receiving employee surveys mailed directly to their home addresses. Please encourage participation by those employees and ensure that your managers and supervisors are aware of this initiative. Also, please encourage candid responses so that barriers to safe work environments may be identified, as well as to recognize those aspects of the safety program that are working well. Employee interview and survey results are anonymous with raw data being destroyed after the project is complete. The Safety Management Office will provide further details in the coming weeks regarding the times and locations for employee interviews. Should you have any questions, please call Steve Eck on (703) 648-7552. United States Department of the Interior OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY Washington, D.C. 20240 Memorandum To: Bureau Directors/ Interior Management Council From: John Berry/Assistant Secretary Policy, Management and Budget Subject: Behavior-Oriented Safety Initiative In 1995, the then Bureau Directors, Bureau Designated Agency Safety and Health Officials (DASHOs) and Bureau Safety Managers, along with Secretary Babbitt, endorsed a Departmental Safety and Occupational Health Strategic Plan, a blueprint for improving the safety and occupational health condition in the Department. Since then, the efforts of many dedicated employees, both inside and outside the safety community, have produced several valuable tools which have helped to control Departmental injuries and Office of Workers' Compensation Programs costs. Consistent with the objective of the Plan, I am pleased to support and announce a special safety initiative that will begin shortly throughout all of the Department of the Interior. This initiative aims at a further reduction in accidents by first identifying our primary accident causal factors and then determining organizational and behavioral barriers to safety that exist in the Department. For this initiative, we will focus on understanding the factors associated with activities and tasks typically performed by employees who work alone or in small independent teams. By the end of this fiscal year we will endorse and begin to implement one or more customized safe behavior models for these employee groups. Over the course of the next several months, representatives of Behavioral Science Technology, Inc., will be conducting employee perception surveys and employee interviews in many Departmental locations. I urge your support and ask that your managers and supervisors are made aware of this initiative. I also urge you to direct all employees who are asked to participate to provide candid responses to questions. A schedule of dates and locations for employee interviews as well as perception surveys will be provided shortly to your bureau DASHO through the Office of Managing Risk and Public Safety. I want to emphasize the importance of this initiative and the cooperation needed to help fulfill our goal - to create a culture where safety is integrated into every work activity and that we practice Safety First, Every Job, Every Time!