Task 9: Health and safety culture
9 Comment on how peer influence on warehouse workers may have negatively
affected the health and safety culture. (12)
Note: You should support your answer, where applicable, using relevant
information from the scenario.
As given in the scenario the peer influence on warehouse workers at Kitchen Craft
may have negatively impacted the health and safety culture in the following ways.
• Lack of Authority or Hierarchy Influence: Senior workers like Worker B set a
dangerous example by ignoring safety rules, causing new workers to adopt unsafe
practices without questioning them.
• Ignoring Safety Gear: Worker B dismissed the need for safety harnesses while
using the scissor lift, likely influencing others to skip necessary protective
equipment.
• Complacency with Safety Practices: Over time, workers became complacent about
safety, accepting unsafe behaviors as normal and increasing the risk of accidents.
• Peer Pressure to Ignore Risks: Worker C ignored signs of rust and unsafe
conditions on the scissor lift due to peer pressure from Worker B, leading to
continued use of unsafe equipment.
• Dismissal of Safety Concerns: The owner’s dismissive attitude toward safety
concerns discouraged workers from speaking up, making them feel their safety was
not a priority.
• Normalizing Unsafe Practices: Unsafe behaviors, such as cutting corners and
taking risks, became normalized, reducing the overall focus on safety.
• Fear of Reporting Issues: Workers were afraid to report safety problems, fearing
retaliation or being labeled troublemakers, which allowed hazards to persist.
• Lack of Safety Role Models: Without leaders actively promoting safety, newer
workers lacked guidance on the importance of following safety protocols.
• Focus on Speed Over Safety: Senior workers emphasized completing tasks quickly,
often at the expense of following safety protocols.
• Poor Communication About Safety: Peer influence hindered open discussions about
safety risks, causing hazards to be overlooked by workers and management.
• Unwillingness to Challenge Authority: Workers felt uncomfortable challenging
senior staff or the owner about unsafe practices, allowing them to continue
unaddressed.
• Acceptance of Risk: Over the time workers began to accept risk as a normal part
of the job that is leading to a disregard for propar safety measures and increasing
the likelihood of accidents.
As evident int the scenario these are the following key points on how peer
influence negatively affected the health and safety culture.
• Lack of Authority: Senior workers like Worker B have no real authority to enforce
safety; it will lead to a culture where safety rules are often ignored or
overlooked.
• Unquestioning Compliance: Newer workers hesitate to challenge their more
experienced peers even when they recognize safety hazards; it will create an unsafe
work environment.
• Ignoring Safety Risks: Workers, including Worker B, downplay obvious safety
risks, such as not using safety harnesses on the scissor lift due to peer pressure.
• Normalizing Unsafe Practices: Unsafe practices like using equipment in poor
condition or skipping safety steps are normalized when senior workers don’t
prioritize safety.
• Lack of Reporting: Workers feel discouraged from reporting safety issues, fearing
they will be labeled as troublemakers or a hindrance to productivity.
• Pressure to Complete Tasks Quickly: There is peer pressure to complete tasks
rapidly, often resulting in workers taking shortcuts that compromise their safety.
• Inadequate Safety Awareness: Newer workers often lack proper safety training,
influenced by senior workers who either ignore safety protocols or don't fully
understand them.
• Downplaying Equipment Issues: Issues with equipment, like the rusted scissor
lift, are overlooked or minimized because workers feel it’s not worth raising
concerns.
• Cultural Attitude Toward Safety: The warehouse culture tends to undervalue
safety, and senior workers fail to emphasize its importance, leading to a lack of
vigilance.
• Fear of Repercussions: Past threats from the owner about job security discourage
workers from speaking up about safety hazards, even when they see risks.
• Worker Disempowerment: Workers feel powerless to raise safety concerns due to the
lack of support from senior peers or management, creating a complacent attitude
toward safety.
• No Clear Leadership on Safety: With no clear leadership or accountability from
the owner, warehouse workers manage safety on their own, resulting in inconsistent
and ineffective safety practices.
