Poor Safety Culture? How is it in your building?

[Integrity]

To all,

An organization's successes and failures in upholding it's safety values is what actually establishes the safety culture within an organization.

The values are the foundational ideals while the culture can be measured by what is said and done.

My experience with UPS in my area is that it maintains excellent safety values while the culture within the buildings that I am associated with is extremely poor!

This incongruity clearly challenges a companies larger claims of keeping Integrity at the core of all we do. After all safety is claimed to be number one.

How can this be changed? How can the safety culture change?

It will only be changed through a radical position by the working people of an organization to accepting nothing less than a safety culture with Integrity not against him.

In some of my research I have found, of the most important characteristics of a good safety culture, the most important is when the entire workforce relentlessly pursues the identification and remediation of hazards in their workplace.

There is a problem with some organizations though.

The problem is that individuals who are relentless about this are most often viewed as troublemakers. I have seen this come to pass many times.

That is why it would take the entire workforce or at least a large enough part to make the individuals who want to perpetuate safety values on paper masquerading as a safety culture the ones who are actually the troublemakers.

There are no bigger troublemakers to an organization than individuals who will work against Integrity and not with Integrity.

Sincerely,
I

 

[TooTechie]

I started reading this and was like this looks like an essay or something I might have been asked to write in college. I then saw the poster and realized I was in an "I" thread.

 

[frivolous petty small.]

Integrity lacks Integrity for pointing others lack of Integrity

 

[Dragon]

the most important is when the entire workforce relentlessly pursues the identification and remediation of hazards in their workplace.

Integrity you need to get on a MTG call and see how many people are on it....guess who is missing??

 

[Anonymous 10]

I'm as safe as a safe. I can vouch for me and then some.

 

[Bubblehead]

In some of my research I have found, of the most important characteristics of a good safety culture, the most important is when the entire workforce relentlessly pursues the identification and remediation of hazards in their workplace.

​Perhaps we should form a union?

 

[DS]

​Perhaps we should form a union?

The safety standards union?
I know Integrity and he feels strongly about this.
IMHO "I",don't be Icarus ,and fly into the sun.
They will fire you for having too much integrity.

 

[jaker]

Ups talks a lot about safety , but then turns around and takes 5 cars out and not hire the drivers that is needed to balance the work load

So what a learned about ups safety is its all talk to show they are the safest company around to the people who don't work in operations

 

[Ptrunner]

Integrity does have a point. Why ups gets away with pushing flow down in the preload, or loading trailers is because people are not united with safety. Many people are not following the methods. If we were to all follow the methods, the pace of work would greatly be reduced. Its the same with the drivers. Drivers that want to go home at 6, skip their lunch, run, might not bend at the knees for every package. There's lots of problems with the culture of safety at ups, and i dont see it getting better at any time because were not united as a union.

 

[Asskicker]

You are correct on the issue of safety. UPS's way is to pump it out as fast as possible and get everyone off the clock. This is how it has always been, and is getting worse. They also say the customer is most important yet they crush soooo many packages trying to speed it up that the customer doesn't matter as much as their numbers. OH, I also know that the Sups in charge now get a monthly bonus if they meet the ridiculous numbers that the company is giving them. Just more incentive to bury the employees in packages at a ridiculous rate, have Sups jump in because of course you can't keep up, and they get a bonus...Integrity???? When I hear UPS throw that word out I can't hold back the laughter. I fail to see much integrity in Management at UPS. You do have to ALL fight the safety issues in each one of your buildings. Troublemaker or not, it's in your best interest. If you file a safety grievance on behalf of all involved in the issue, and you all sign it, then they can't single anyone out and harass you. Stick together. I hope there are public viewers on here reading this. All true.

 

[djilo91]

They don't care about safety as much as the say they do.
I work as a loader on the midnight shift, we get about 100k volume a night, giver or take a few grand depending on the say. My load gets about 1600 a night and used to be no problem. Until two people on the day sort in a different part of the building injured themselves on the belt at the end of an extendo. Anyone whos ever worked on one of them knows that that is pretty much impossible because the belt is flush tight to the end of the extendo, so youd literally have to lift the belt and shove ur fingers underneath to hurt yourself.

So how do they fix those injuries (which happened to 2 friends on the same day during the same shift, even though no one else has been injured that way the entire time the extendos have been here)?, easy, go to a different part of the building and remove the belts entirely and replace them with black plastic slides, that dont allow packages to slide, or the extendo to be raised or lowered. So this means that load stands are useless until your about 75% into a 53 footer. And you have to pull packages that are out of your power zone all night long, and the safety supes agree that this is the only way it can be done now, in loads that have as much volume as ours.

So basically load stand usage has dropped off, as well as working in your powerzone, and back injury has gone way up, because it was safer to remove the belts rather than actually research the other aspects that would be affected by a change like that.

Production has gone way down to, because all the loads run at about 100 pph less an hour now that you constantly need to pull the packages to you when they used to come down on there own.

​/rant

 

[Up_and_at_UPS]

Plowed over!

Today was the worst. We were crushed. Sups just kept pushing. Packages were being crushed. One employee told the sup we were going to have some code 35's. He said, "oh well, reset the belt". Break neck pace. I could not even get to my shut off. Packages all over the floor. All the while the sup is going around asking safety questions because we are expecting an audit. Total hypocrisy! Sup said, "safety is number 1". You can't beat these guys, it is a culture of intimidation, just gotta do the best you can and look out for yourself and your fellow employees. I tried to fight it. It never works, they single you out, and the union throws you under the bus.

 

[Indecisi0n]

I am on the safety committee and UPS is a joke when it comes to safety.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

I am on the safety committee and UPS is a joke when it comes to safety.

Are you sure that in this case it is the company that is the joke?

 

[Indecisi0n]

Are you sure that in this case it is the company that is the joke?

We have guys getting injured on a weekly basis and there is nothing being done about it. Guys are still skipping lunches just so they can get back to the building before 9:00PM and UPS still wants to know why we have so many injuries. What is wrong with these guys? Not only are they working tough hours but they aren't even taking a lunch while doing it! When will they learn?

 

[Integrity]

I am on the safety committee and UPS is a joke when it comes to safety.

Indecisi0n,

I know this has been brought forth before but I have to repeat myself again.

The Safety Committees are collectively bargained for rights.

My experience has shown me that lack of union leadership and accountability is the root cause of this problem that you have stated.

If your safety committee is not strictly honoring the contract as it pertains to safety committees then it is contributing to making safety a joke.

Why does the Teamster Leadership continues to allow weak, company sympathetic members crowd their Safety Committees?

There has to be some payoff for this?

The current state of safety committees and safety committee members does more harm to employees than help.

Indecisi0n,

What part do you play?

Do you contribute and participate in the joke?

Sincerely,
I

 

[Indecisi0n]

Indecisi0n,

I know this has been brought forth before but I have to repeat myself again.

The Safety Committees are collectively bargained for rights.

My experience has shown me that lack of union leadership and accountability is the root cause of this problem that you have stated.

If your safety committee is not strictly honoring the contract as it pertains to safety committees then it is contributing to making safety a joke.

Why does the Teamster Leadership continues to allow weak, company sympathetic members crowd their Safety Committees?

There has to be some payoff for this?

The current state of safety committees and safety committee members does more harm to employees than help.

Indecisi0n,

What part do you play?

Do you contribute and participate in the joke?

Sincerely,
I

I bring up all the safety issues that I witness and we talk about what we should/will do and nothing gets done (by management). I bring up the same issues over and over again at future meetings and still nothing changes. We always get the "ill look into that" as the boss writes something on paper but he never does. I wish we could as a group could do more.

 

[Integrity]

I bring up all the safety issues that I witness and we talk about what we should/will do and nothing gets done (by management). I bring up the same issues over and over again at future meetings and still nothing changes. We always get the "ill look into that" as the boss writes something on paper but he never does. I wish we could as a group could do more.

Indecisi0n,

You can if you want. But you must be willing to pay the price.

Have you read the contract regarding safety committees?

Sincerely,
I

 

[moreluck]

Ethan Tremblay asks too many questions - YouTube

 

[Integrity]

Ethan Tremblay asks too many questions - YouTube

It is a shame that several individuals have to frequently butt into discussion threads to attack members or the posting style, comments or questions of those trying to engage in discussion.

I am of the opinion that these individuals are not a benefit to an online community and these types of attacks lack Integrity.

I believe these attacks even dissuade individuals who may post from posting, if this type of rude, immature posting wasn't so prevalent.

Sincerely,
I