Aviation Human Factors looks at Social Psychology ‘Culture’ issues
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Concerning Safety Culture
Safety culture is how we perceive the combination of attitude, beliefs, perceptions and values and it is considered as part of the organisation culture, sometimes described by the phrase "the way we do things around here".
What do we mean by Safety Culture within an Organisation?
Safety Culture is the way safety is perceived, valued and prioritised within an organisation.
Safety Culture reflects the true commitment to safety at all levels in the organisation.
Within the maintenance environment, safe and professional practices are not only expected as a normal behaviour, they should also be encouraged and reinforced by the management team.
A measure of a strong culture is the willingness of the management team when under commercial pressure to prioritise the safe delivery of maintenance as a priority.
Positive Cultural Behaviour - In this type of culture, personnel will tend to "do it by the book" and take the necessary time to ensure all work is correctly performed, inspected and signed off
Negative Culture Behaviour - In this type of culture shortcuts and workarounds are commonplace. Even the mantra becomes "it will do a trip" or "near enough is good enough"
A willingness to accept such norms can easily lead to a lowering of standards and the increase in exposure.
How to recognize an organization with a good safety culture?
In a safe culture each worker can define their specific role in safety.
Mechanics and Technicians / Certifying Staff are highly educated and understand the old hard line of "my way or the highway" is really no longer appropriate. They know the importance of safety and the fact that lives depend on doing it correctly.
Moreover everyone understands that the risk of cutting corners is unacceptable.
An organization with a good safety culture is one where safe and professional behaviour is fully embedded within the mindset of both employee and management.
Moreover where safety is seen as the required outcome of all operations, and where safe and professional practices are fully endorsed by management.
To be successful requires a top down demonstration of support for safe and professional operations throughout the business. It is easy for a poor safety culture to develop, so we all need to be ever vigilant to protect the integrity of the system
SAS & SOL offer training in Human Factors, Safety Management Systems Implementation & Management, Maintenance Error Management and Training for Trainers in a Human Factors and Maintenance Environment. For details please see www.sassofia.com & www.sofemaonline.com or email office@sassofia.com & online@sassofia.com
