Survey: Worker attitudes, limited budgets hinder safety progress

New York – Employee attitudes can present an obstacle to advancing safety and health – even in organizations with upper-management support, according to results of a survey from MySafetySign, an online retailer.

A total of 532 safety professionals took the online Health and Safety Industry Survey 2014, and 470 responses were used in the analysis. Although 96 percent of respondents said their employer demonstrated commitment to safety and health through efforts such as training and staff meetings, almost 40 percent said their main difficulty was workers who were uninterested or uncooperative in regard to implementing safety and health practices. Other commonly cited barriers were limited budget and lack of employee understanding about risk.

When asked to identify under-addressed hazards, almost one-quarter of respondents chose stress, followed by overwork (20 percent) and back strain (19 percent). Respondents also said working alone, lifting heavy loads and musculoskeletal disorders deserved more attention.