Taking Shortcuts
Every day we make decisions that we hope will make a job go faster and more efficient. Often times when we think we are saving time, we have to be careful that we aren’t jeopardizing our health or the health of one of our employees. Shortcuts that reduce the safety of the job aren’t shortcuts, but are items that might increase our chances of injury.
Confidence is a good thing. Over confidence to the point of arrogance is too much of a good thing. Also, the old adage of “it can’t happen to me” is an attitude that can lead to improper methods of doing the your work, using incorrect procedures or sometimes the wrong tools. Any one of these items can cause an injury to you or to a fellow worker. Plan your work safely with the proper tools and work your plan. Always implement controls to mitigate the risk of the planned work. If you cannot do a task safely then the task should not be completed. Instead of trying to take a shortcut, contact your supervisor to help with the resources needed to complete the work safely. Everyone has the right to a safe workplace. Shortcuts are like gambling with your life, at some point everyone’s luck runs out.