Some really interesting observations from Jop Havinga, Mohammed Ibrahim Shire and Drew Rae’s recent paper exploring the use of Take 5s in industry (link below).
Too many things to cover but I found the attached points (images 1 & 2) pretty pertinent.
They observed that while the “official” (work-as-imagined) view of Take 5s is that it would be completed in real-time and act as a cue for observing hazards and controls, three alternative strategies were also used:
- The forms were completed in advance
- The forms were completed after the work
- The forms were completed by other parties on behalf of somebody
Take 5s completed in advance was found to be the most common strategy – where it was completed even before arriving at site. Notably in image 2, a disconnect existed between the person completing the card versus their team taking heed of what was written in the card.
They go to explain that little to no evidence demonstrating how Take 5 cards increased the attention workers paid to their own comfort or safety, the safety of people around them, attention to rules, worksite hazards, the use of tools, or concerns around the timing and pace of work.
These findings remind me of Deepwater Horizon where similar issues with the pre-start risk assessments were highlighted (see link for my previous post on this). It was highlighted that (source: deposition July 12, pp. 49-50):
- The policy of one START card per day from all the personnel on board
- High number of made-up cards being submitted into the system
- High numbers of positive ‘atta boy’ cards which do not offer any real learning opportunities
- The majority of corrective action cards focus on low-risk safety issues”(for example “trailing hand technique, untidy equipment state) and not on major hazards
- The system creates a significant amount of paperwork which adds to the workloads of supervisors … reducing time mentoring and supervising
- The START card system is seen in a negative light and many crews still feel like they ‘tell tales’ on others instead of viewing it as a learning opportunity
Further, under testimony, one witness described how they “sometimes” observed people to just make up START cards in order to meet targets.
Images source: https://doi.org/10.3390/safety8020027
Post on Deepwater Horizon: https://wordpress.com/post/safety177496371.wordpress.com/653
Link to the LinkedIn article: https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6935722656423956480?commentUrn=urn%3Ali%3Acomment%3A%28activity%3A6935722656423956480%2C6935722834811904001%29
SafetyInsights.org 