On Safety - 2

Malaysia more than most countries hires foreign worker for her labor intensive projects like constructions ans the agricultural sectors and as such I found out the hard way in dealing with a mixed group of workers working alongside each other on a single project. Indonesians rub shoulders alongside a Vietnamese and an Indian (from India) works alongside a Chinese from Malaysia or a Phillipino may be working under the supervision of a Malay Supervisor; they all have their own ways, their habits and cultural conditioning. Trying to give a 'Tool Box" talk to the whole group of workers at one time can be nerve wrecking as each will display their own attitude towards what you have to say to outdo the other group. It is a challenge to be able to address and capture the attention of the whole work force on a site without some form of personal presence that they will have a respect for.
Show of knowledge alone will not cut the chase, one has to be one hundred percent present  in the moment delivering straight from your heart your care and concerns for Safety. Most employee no matter the country of origin will sit and listen to the your talk if the topic and manner of delivery is genuine and sincere and what you talk about hit their hearts.Throwing the book at workers most who can hardly read or write is not the best of means, but touching on subjects that is of their innermost concern will grab their attention.
I was once asked to address a group of Chinese workers whose job it was to install the main beams to the ceiling of a warehouse in Kerteh because the Petronas health and Safety Officers had caught one or two not wearing Safety Harnesses or even a hard hat, one or two did not even wear shoes as they perform their job at great heights I was lost for what to say to these guys when I had them in the meeting room. They were most arrogant and defiant showing contempt much less respect for my position as a Safety officer.
I then remembered a conversation I had very early in the morning with the security guard at the gate and we were talking about seeing ghosts every now and then at night. I thought nothing of it till the moment i opened my mouth to talk to these group of die hard daredevils. "Look! You believe or Not?!" I asked them out of the blue. 'Apa itu?" one of them asked in Malay, I continued in Malay to the effect."You belief in Ghost and other spirits living in the area?" Don't tell me you don't otherwise why you have that little shrine with incense and oranges and apples in the corner there? I got their attention.
If you fall and break your neck and die it would not be so bad but if you don't and are forever paralyzed I have allot of paper to do and your family suffer more than I do. I can say simply say you slipped and fall, but you felt someone pushed you off, even ghosts don't like those who show off. At least if you fall following all Safety Procedures you stand to gain something from it. So i went on and on  and after that all procedures were fully observed with no more problem from this group. It was a last dish for me but by using the most ignorant of reasoning I managed to gain the upper hand over the situation. In Buddhism it is called the use of Skillful Means.
Your words, thoughts and deeds have to be intelligent and how you approach an employee will have to be with no thought of who or where the person is from but just another soul in need of your help; you are there to ensure his safety. Once you have recognized your role and act with genuine interest to the issue at hand, you will act with that authority that has been relegated to you. Your authority will prevail without having to show any form of pressure the demand for respect.Being a health and Safety Officer was a role that i enjoyed very much as it allowed me to practice what I have come to understand of human nature and the need for compassion. No employee wish for himself or anyone to be hurt on the job but sometimes due to unforseen circumstances an accident occurs and the cause may be not just equipment or human error but a whole gamut of causes right from not getting paid on time, living conditions etc.
I made it an effort to visit as many of the employees as i could at their homes and when I realized how hard a life most had to endure especially those foreign workers I felt more closer and understood their work performances aptitude better. To most there was no joy for the work they do as it did not reflect upon their living conditions. They worked purely to survive always hoping for a better job or better offer elsewhere; Their hearts were not committed to what they were doing. Most main Contractors at a job site pays little or no attention to the well being of workers for the sub- contractors; it is not their issue to solve. A company i knew once did not pay its employees for three months and it came down to near violence when the employees had had enough. These kind of situations reflects upon the whole project from the highest management to the employees and its is for the Main Contractor to take skillful actions to resolve such issues. Seldom do we find satisfied employees involved in accidents and these employees serves their employer with pride: you can never have a better crew than those who work for you with pride.