For the past 24 years, I have heard hundreds of corporate leaders and safety professionals tell people they should be their Brother's Keeper. Apart from the Biblical story in Genesis Chapter 4, people clearly understand what being their Brother's Keeper means. Even those not familiar with the Biblical story understand it means looking out for the people around you.
I believe most people are willing to help the people around them be safe day in and day out. The challenge is not the motivation to do so but what specifically should I do. In all my reading over the years, I have learned from many sources when someone has a desire to do or accomplish something and they do not understand the first step that is when they will choose to do nothing. Confusion in any circumstance creates inaction.
So, I leave my safety meeting, excited and willing to watch out for my fellow workers. A day or two later, I see someone doing something unsafe or they may be near a hazard and I notice it. I remember I want to help, but my mind is faced with the question, "What do I do now?" Since no one taught me the how to of what they admonished me to do, I stop dead in my tracks and do nothing. I may even feel bad I didn't do anything but I soothe my conscience by reminding myself I would have done something I just didn't know what.
Not knowing what to do also causes me to rationalize the person must be aware of the hazard or I talk myself into believing that nothing will happen. The second is a belief reinforced every day when we see hazards and nothing bad happens. Clearly, the majority of times when someone chooses to take a risk they actually get away with it. If someone were injured every time someone took a shortcut I can assure you, shortcuts would disappear in a flash.
I may even excuse myself by telling myself the worker I see doing something unsafe has been here longer than me so they probably know what they are doing. What is more insidious is as a younger worker, I may even adopt their bad behavior thinking to myself they clearly know their job and if they can take a shortcut so can I.
