THINK OF THE NEXT PERSON

There are many things that need to go right for a worksite or company to maintain a high level of safety and experience zero or a low number of injuries over a long period of time.

One characteristic of a workforce that is very important to achieve low injury numbers is having employees who consider how their decisions affect others. When workers think about each other when preparing for a task or doing a task, everyone wins.

An important rule of thumb when deciding is “to think of the next person”. Defining “Think of the Next Person” Preplanning is one of the most important things individuals can do at work to ensure safe and efficient operations.

One aspect of preplanning is thinking about the others who may be impacted by your decisions or the work that you are doing. When you make a choice to do something at work you should not only just consider what is easy or convenient for you, but it should also be taken into consideration how that choice may affect another person.

An easy way to discuss this idea is to use common examples that happen every day in workplaces, with your teams, on the job.

Great things happen when everyone begins to consider how their decisions will affect others. Realize that your own safety not only depends on your decisions, but choices made by every other person working around you.

Remember that a choice as simple as placing a heavy box on a table instead of the floor can save a coworker from experiencing a severe back injury that places them out of work for months.