By Norm Oshrin

 

Our Future Begins with Safety” sums up the direction Parsons Electric has incorporated to move the company forward.

The new slogan, which was a result of an intra-company contest, reflects Parsons’ commitment to the promotion of safe work habits, practices, and techniques. It is a commitment that has been duly acknowledged and honored in the industry and beyond, said Bonnie Lunzer, the company’s Safety Director.

“Our safety program is always evolving and growing,” Lunzer said. “We are always striving to do better.” Lunzer said the safety program has been working so well that, though it was not a goal, it has been recognized with awards.

The Ava Award, for one, was given to the company several months ago for its new Safety Orientation video. Administered and judged by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals, the award recognizes “outstanding work by creative professionals involved in the concept, writing, direction, shooting and editing of audio-visual materials and programs.”

The video, Lunzer said, “gives necessary refresher training on safety topics and important safety measures, such as fall protection, working in confined space, electrical safety, etc.”

The 20-minute video, which was six months in the making, “has greatly improved our new hire orientation process,” Lunzer said. “It gives our new employees a little insight to who we are, important safety training, and a clear expectation of both their safe behavior and the choices they make on the jobsite.”

The operative word is choices.

The theme of the award-winning video is based on the choices employees make. “We strive to reach the level where no one is injured on our jobsites and everyone is going home safely each night,” she said.

Proactive commitment to safety by many companies has been recognized by organizations like the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Associated General Contractors (AGC.)

The Construction, Health and Safety Excellence (CHASE) program was implemented in February 2003 by the Minnesota Department of Labor, together with the Associated General Contractors of Minnesota, and Minnesota OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration.)

The CHASE Minnesota initiative expects partners to reduce injuries, illnesses, and fatalities on the jobsite. Incentives are provided for contractors who voluntarily participate and demonstrate implementation of effective safety and health programs.

In January 2008, Parsons was one of 12 Minnesota contractors recognized for comprehensive safety programs. This is the third year Parsons has been recognized with the CHASE award. “We have been doing a good job, and we have a safety record to be proud of,” Lunzer said. “The CHASE program unites the contractor and MNOSHA in a working partnership to ensure safety. It sets the bar high, but gives us realistic goals to achieve.”

“We’ve had significant decreases in the amount of lost time,” said Sandra Iverson, Assistant Safety Director. “A record competitors can’t match.”

Parsons Lost Time incident rate is now at 0.14, as compared to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) electrical industry average of 1.9 in 2006. (Lost Time rate is calculated by multiplying the number of Lost Time cases by 200,000 and dividing by total man-hours.)

To help assure that the safety message is echoing throughout the company, Parsons also instituted a Cultural Gap Analysis (CGA), which provides senior management with unfiltered feedback from the workers in the field. The aim of the CGA was to see if the message of the company was filtering through all levels of the company. It’s important for field employees be on the same page as management, and part of the team.

“We have been using the results to help shape our safety initiatives,” Lunzer said. “Our employees are really embracing the safe work practices. Safety should never be separated from production; otherwise you could be tempted to prioritize one over the other.”

The awards are a side benefit to the dedication of each and every employee making the right choices every day. Once again, it all comes back to that opportune word: choice.

Though awards and accolades are nice to receive, Parsons’ safety program is about the employees. “We continue to empower every employee to make decisions that ensure they go home every night, able to do the things they enjoy,” Lunzer said.