Human Performance is an error reduction initiative that puts barriers in place to prevent mistakes that lead to injuries. Every business unit is using some component of Human Performance to mitigate the risk of employee injury. Some organizations are farther along than others, making it challenging to determine its overall impact on performance.

One example of Human Performance in action was the work of a group of meter readers who developed a training program about avoiding and dealing with dog bites, a significant safety risk. They presented it to their peers across the company and, as a result, only four dog bite incidents occurred throughout the company in 2010, a 64 percent improvement over the prior two-year average of 11 incidents. Also, no severity days were associated with these events last year compared with an average of 168 lost work days the previous two years.

In 2011, we are revising our Safety and Health Manual to put more emphasis on those policies and procedures that are required, rather than being only an alphabetical listing that offers no sense of prioritization. We are adding a new section called “life saving rules” to proactively address our greatest risks. These are the rules specifically designed to protect employees from significant harm. Audit Services will work with Distribution in 2011 to evaluate and recommend further integration of these rules throughout the Distribution organization.

"The (employee) fatality reminded me that an accident can happen at any given time, to anyone. It made me change my way of thinking and be more aware of my surroundings. Something like this sticks with you."

Q&A with Richard Worsham (pdf)