Category: Wellness Incentives

Wellness Incentives

Safety Santas who Deliver Coal don’t get Cookies and Milk

December 19, 2014 by

It’s officially winter and holiday lights are springing up on buildings and trees in neighborhoods across America. Along with all of the joy associated with the season, there is also an element of stress. While many parents, aunts, uncles and grandparents search for the best prices for gifts on their recipients’ wish lists, the children who expect Santa to deliver the goods obsess whether they’ve landed on the naughty or nice list this year. Their goal; avoid the notorious lump of coal in their stocking.

However; if you are putting together a safety program for your organization, you most likely aren’t Santa Claus. Therefore punishments like coal shouldn’t be your choice for safety motivation. Employees shouldn’t be punished for being in an unsafe work environment, and they shouldn’t be punished for reporting issues or problems they see. If you punish people when an incident is reported, the number of incidents reported will go down, not the number of incidents, and OSHA agrees. Instead opt for a behavior-based safety program that supports a culture of safety. Involving everyone in your organization and creating diversity in award rules, like on-the-spot awards and team award help achieve a positive safety culture.

In addition to incentivizing positive behavior, use these actions to analyze your current culture to see what needs to change:

  • Do a “health check” of your organization’s safety performance and compare it to averages and trends for your industry
  • Examine your processes for identifying, reporting and mitigating hazards in the workplace
  • Evaluate your safety training curriculum, andReview your current safety policies and procedures and ensure compliance with regulations.

A culture of safety will naturally create a long “nice list” for your organization while still allowing workers to be safe and responsible.In addition to rewarding safe practices like reporting near-misses and proper procedure, incentivize participation in training, inspections and proactive safety attitude. In addition; a safety program that rewards instead of punishes and promotes a culture of safety will put you on OSHA’s “nice list” too.

And about those cookies…maybe it would be a good idea to opt for a wellness program instead. New Years is a perfect time to start those healthy habits for 2015.

Be a Recognition Champion

December 16, 2014 by

Behind every successful organization, project, or team, there is a knowledgeable and well-informed person leading the way. Recently as I watched several football games, I caught myself thinking about how important it is to have someone take pride and ownership of their roll. As a coach you must be fully devoted to the success of… Read more »

A Seasonal Perspective on Program Strategy

October 24, 2014 by

It’s the middle of autumn. It’s getting darker earlier every day. The Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays are still a month or more away. I know of many people (including me) who find that these seasonal circumstances can conspire to make them a bit sluggish. I’ve also seen companies that have been driving hard toward their… Read more »

Incentive Programs in a Connected World

October 10, 2014 by

If you are a regular reader, you may have noticed that several of our blog entries stress the importance of effective program communication within any incentive program.  Whether you are awarding years of service points in an employee recognition program or communicating your latest sales promotion within a channel sales program it is important to… Read more »

Incentive Programs – Do You Need a Bigger Boat?

August 27, 2014 by

Just a few weeks ago, one of the most popular TV events of the summer concluded – Shark Week on the Discovery Channel.  One reason for its popularity is our fascination and fear of those steely-eyed predators.  My two daughters and I love sharks – in fact, one of mine and my oldest daughter’s bucket… Read more »