With the right attitude, companies can turn health and safety from a necessary expense to a crucial business advantage, according to Jim Armstrong, executive director of Ontario operations for the Industrial Accident Prevention Association (IAPA).
“More and more companies are beginning to see that having the proper programs in place can actually be a big plus rather than just an unfortunate pricetag,” says Armstrong.
“It’s something that truly does pay for itself, and people really just have to see in that light.”
Speaking to the 2008 edition of IAPA’s annual Safety Solutions conference in Sudbury, Armstrong repeatedly hit upon the theme of how health and safety should be seen as a general benefit, though he admits the financial reality alone seals the deal for most.
Global losses in gross domestic product (GDP) as a result of workplace illness, injury or death is estimated to be nearly $1.2 trillion. A little closer to home, Canadian companies are said to lose $16 billion annually as a result of employee illness and disability.
Despite the compelling financial advantages, Armstrong says companies have a variety of pressing reasons to consider implementing proper health and safety programs.
A slew of factors ranging from news coverage to stock market value to employee performance can all be drastically improved through proper commitment of resources, he says.
The only obstacle to achieving this kind of change, he says, is the mentality of senior management.
Despite the many benefits that come with health and safety, the IAPA’s analysis of Ontario companies finds that most only do the bare minimum required to meet regulatory compliance. In fact, 66 per cent fall into this category, which Armstrong refers to as “just keeping The Man off your back.” Thirty-two per cent can be said to fit into the “performance” category, meaning that they may have a few advanced attitudes regarding health and safety. A scant two per cent fall into the “excellence” category, representing firms that do things over and above what’s called for and take the initiative.
He highlights some Northern Ontario firms such as event sponsors Atlas Copco as those who truly “get it” but says there still remains a long way to go for the province in general.
While most health and safety efforts in today’s workplace tend to focus on hard hats and heavy equipment, less obvious dangers are beginning to place a growing strain on the modern workforce, Armstrong adds.
A key component of this new approach to health and safety is the concept of psychosocial safety, which IAPA advisor Larry Masotti admits to be a deceptively intimidating term.
“It’s the kind of thing that people talk about amongst themselves and know to be true, but just haven’t really been discussed in this kind of way,” says Masotti, who adds that although it’s long been in used in a medical context, it’s new to the realm of occupational health and safety.
The uncommon term refers to a type of mental health, revolving mostly around the concept of stress created by elements in the workplace which create a toxic environment either through fear, poor leadership or “unfair” demands which put employees’ work-life balance out of order.
Masotti points to studies conducted by Dr. Martin Shain, a senior scientist with the Toronto-based Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, which reinforce the negative effects of ignoring these problems.
In pure financial terms, the costs of work-induced stress reach anywhere from $3.5 billion to $11 billion annually across Canada.
However, they also double the odds of substance abuse and triple the odds of mental health problems as well as back pain and even certain types of cancers.
The approach to resolving this kind of problem largely involves developing the proper leadership, with supportive managers who understand things such as the need for a proper work-life balance.
This should be complemented by an organizational culture which respects this balance, alongside the need to reward those who put forward significant effort.
Psychosocial health will likely be a big part of discussions on occupational health and safety, Masotti says, as it helps to fill out the gaps otherwise ignored in the modern workplace.
“This really is the future of health and safety,” he says.
