The Human Side of Alignment Article 5 of 8  An injured warehouse employee returns to modified duty after a back injury. During the first shift, a task causes renewed pain, but the employee hesitates to […]

A risk assessment can pass every audit and still cause an employer to pay more for workers' compensation three renewals from now.  The risk assessment document on file describes the job as someone wrote it […]

Spooky Safe A workplace can look exactly the same while becoming a completely different risk environment. Bring-your-family events, office trick-or-treating, trunk-or-treat celebrations, pumpkin patches, and other Halloween activities introduce people who were never part of […]

Spooky Safe Pumpkin carving looks simple because the ingredients are familiar: a pumpkin, a knife, a table, and a design. Familiar objects can disguise an unfamiliar task. Most employees participating in a workplace carving contest […]

Spooky Safe A Halloween costume can change the physical conditions under which someone performs a familiar job. A mask narrows the available visual field. Different shoes change the relationship between the feet and the floor. […]

Spooky Safe Halloween decorations can transform a workplace in a matter of hours. Extension cords cross floors that were clear yesterday. Pumpkins appear beside entrances, displays narrow walking paths, artificial cobwebs extend into doorways, and […]

Spooky Safe Halloween creates an unusual workplace experiment. Organizations intentionally alter spaces that are normally designed around consistency. Decorations appear in walking paths and work areas. Lighting may change. Employees wear unfamiliar clothing, masks, shoes, […]

Safety at Work Returning an injured worker to work is usually framed around function. What can the person safely lift, carry, stand, reach, tolerate, or perform while recovery continues? Workplace sexual violence complicates that model […]