My name is Dale Erickson and I recently joined the CSSI team of safety professionals. With the recent retirement of Tom Suckow, I will be assuming the management responsibilities of the WORKSAFE program. Tom will be sorely missed by everyone involved in the WORKSAFE program, including myself. I didn’t get the opportunity to work with Tom long, but the couple of months I was around him allowed me to obtain an even stronger view and belief in the WORKSAFE program that I never had before being on the outside. Our team consists of Brandon Black, Michael Messer and myself. All three of us have strong backgrounds, knowledge, and capabilities that we can bring to the WORKSAFE projects going forward.
I wanted to bring up in my first WORKSAFE article the value of family. Whether it is a spouse, a significant other, or even just yourself, family is very important. To keep the reward of family at a high level you need to be safe. Safety includes not just yourself, but also those around you. You should always consider the safety of everyone around you because at the end of your work day the goal is to return home to your family in the same condition as you left them when your work day, week, or cycle started.
Family is what drives us. It is what we are providing for even if it is the full support or just a small part, family is important to everyone in some way. You would hope that everyone that is working around you or near you is thinking about your safety, and will do the same in return. If you see something unsafe, speak up, do not hesitate or hold back because you may be looked at differently or criticized. Safety is a mindset, a culture, and there should never be a second thought about safety. Take the initiative to speak up, because hesitation could be what prevents you or your co-worker from returning to their family the same way they left them.
Until next month, be safe and WORKSAFE,
Dale Erickson – Safety Consultant - CSSI
