Safety Management and the Link to Productivity

Abstract

Just as Gary and Britta are launching the productivity system across the company, news of a serious accident spreads across all sites. An operator in France has tried to make up lost time by removing the safety guard on a machine. He has been dragged into the moving parts of the machinery and it seems likely that he will lose the use of his arm. It is a shock to everyone. The CEO and board of UCo get involved and they are more determined than ever to do everything in their power to prevent anything like this happening again. They mandate zero tolerance for serious accidents across the organization underlining that safety is UCo’s license to operate and that there can be no excuses for not focusing on this. UCo knows that they need to improve their safety performance and a debate about safety ensues within the organization.