| EDITORIAL |
JUST MY SAFETY OBSERVATIONS Hiliary H. Holloway, Jr.
I
recently ran into a former co-worker at a safety networkin the minds of many. I can’t begin to tell you how many ing meeting (yeah, we talk and actually network) and a times during an inspection we were told we were ruining recent graduate asked how long we’d known each other. business, were an obstacle to productivity (because we Without much thought I responded that we’d known each didn’t know how business ran), were Communist, and/or other since I started with OSHA in 1982. Now I was fine un-American. Occasionally they’d feel entitled enough with 1982 until this young dude had the nerve to point to use two of my personal favorites -- “I pay your salary,” out, “wow, that’s 30 years, I bet you’ve seen a lot of (to which I’d reply that I paid more of my salary than changes… Sir!” Again, I was still kinda’ okay until he they did) or “you’re only here because of an Affirmative added that “sir” comment, but lest I get off track, he was Action quota.” Of course there was no way they could right, I have seen a lot of changes. fathom an African American could have a degree and acI was somewhat taken aback, tually be qualified without govstumbled to come up with an ernment intervention, but again answer, and then found mythat’s another story for that other self easily responding “the bigcolumn, (and probably a much Safety became a nogest change is probably the gap longer column than this). brainer when the between those who get it and My early observations witthose who don’t, put another nessed employers spending insurance industry began way, the believers and the nonmore time trying to avoid and preaching that fewer believers.” There was a time when deceive OSHA than being comemployers did not automatically pliant. Now in all fairness and insurance losses equated declare any of the following with the benefit of hindsight, to more profit for statements: “our employees are we/OSHA, did not do a stelour most valuable assets,” “safelar job presenting our pureverybody. ty is part of our culture,” “we pose, our qualifications and/ believe in safety because it’s the or truly listening to employers’ right thing to do!” And before complaints that we didn’t unabout 1990, I don’t think I’d ever heard “safety is good derstand how business operated. We were too often infor business!” For that matter you’d never see the word consistent in our message, our training, our compliance “diversity” used either, (but that’s another column for anenforcement, and heaven forbid there be an adminiother venue). stration change. We were the subject of ridicule, jokes Reflecting on my observations of 30 years in the pro(“Why are toilet seats split? So the OSHA inspectors fession, safety originally was viewed as just another exdon’t bump their heads when they drink!”), cartoons (I’m ample of “government regulation” getting in the way of sure some of you saw and remember the infamous “cowbusiness and productivity. To that list you could add such boy after an OSHA inspection” cartoon), and fodder for nuisance rules pertaining to the environment (EPA) and urban legends (i.e. “OSHA puts companies out of busiEEO/Affirmative Action, each of which were often reness”). sented and commonly thought of as having no right to Keep in mind, because insurance/workers compensadictate their beliefs to others and/or add to the bureaucration costs had yet to become a factor, safety related accy slowing things down. Indeed, being an OSHA complicidents (and indeed OSHA fines) were typically viewed ance officer made us second only to IRS agents in terms as just part of the cost of doing business. Too many emof being unpopular in general, and a true public enemy ployers valued and promoted safety efforts that were
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