In the current context of the COVID-19 crisis, several leaders find themselves in isolation and try in various ways to keep in touch with the people who are part of their teams, who carry out activities that may expose them to risks that are sometimes critical for their health and their safety.
Here are some key behaviors that these leaders can adopt (managers, supervisors OHS resources) in order to take care of their people and help them manage OHS risks in the situations encountered. Daily or according to what is possible for everyone, here are some interactive tips:
Make Contact
· Just ask, “How are you?”
· Do you feel good, how is your energy?
· How is it going with the family, spouse / husband, children?
· How is it going within the team, the atmosphere, the mutual support, etc
The goal is to demonstrate attention, “Caring”
Ask teams preventive questions
· How does OHS risk control work?
· What are the most critical situations?
· What comes up from your risk analysis?
· Have there been any incidents, near-miss, if so, what is the outcome?
· What measures have been taken to respond to this incident / near-miss?
· Are there any team reported points that I should know?
· Is there anything I can do to help?
· Do you need support from a member of our OHS team
Apply good leadership practices
· Foster dialogue, use open-ended questions (see item 2)
· Show caring, express your impressions
· Focus first on good practices, positive reinforcement (R +)
· Also recall the potential injuries of at-risk behaviors (R-)
· Thank team members for their prevention efforts
· Position commitments together, yours and theirs
· Take some notes for the next team interaction
Author: Gérald Perrier