Step Three: Conduct Cause Analysis
We can arrange the causes of accidents into four basic categories: unpreventable acts, hazardous conditions, unsafe/inappropriate behaviors, and system design/performance weaknesses.
You must analyze the surface symptoms to discover the underlying root causes.
Studies are all over the map as to the specific percentages for each cause category, so we will generalize the degree to which each category causes accidents in the workplace.
- Unpreventable acts (surface causes): A very small percentage of all workplace accidents are considered unpreventable. Heart attacks and other events that could not have been foreseen by the employer are examples of unpreventable incidents. Unfortunately, some companies attempt to categorize most of their injuries in this way. They justify these beliefs with comments such as: "He just lifted the box wrong and strained his back. What could we do?" Unfortunately, these are excuses for not investigating the "root cause" of the injury.
- Hazardous conditions (surface causes): Hazardous conditions (OSHA violations) account for a larger percentage, but well under 50%, of all accidents. Because OSHA rules primarily address the prevention of hazardous conditions in the workplace, these rules do not have a significant impact on decreasing accidents. Rules influence, but may not successfully control or eliminate, the role of human factors in causing accidents. For example, safety rules can be either followed or disregarded by employers and employees.
- Unsafe behaviors (surface causes): Inappropriate or unsafe employer/employee behaviors are more common than hazardous conditions as causes of accidents in the workplace. In fact, they are the cause of most hazardous conditions.
- System design/performance weaknesses (root causes): SMS failures contributing to workplace accidents ultimately account for almost all workplace accidents. System management and leadership failures refer to the inadequate design or performance of safety principles, policies, programs, plans, processes, procedures, practices, rules, training, resources, enforcement, and supervision.
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
2-4. Which accident cause category ultimately results in almost all workplace accidents?
You forgot to answer the question!