How does change affect safety?
Christopher Davis
Updated on March 21, 2026
Change and stress are major causes of incidents. The impact of change on most employees, both line and management, and on safety, health and environmental performance is typically negative. Results include increased worry, frustration, resentment, stress and distraction.
What is change management in safety?
Management of Change, or MOC, is a best practice used to ensure that safety, health and environmental risks are controlled when a company makes changes in their facilities, documentation, personnel, or operations.
How does change management affect employees?
Some organizational changes require major restructuring, resulting in sweeping life changes for a number of employees. Typical changes that negatively impact a portion of the employees are salary cuts, loss of benefits, downgrading in job position, job loss or relocation to another city, state or country.
What are the effects of change on people?
The Impact of Change Individual and group morale are improved and there is an overall sense of cohesion and well-being. When change has a negative impact, there is a significant increase in stress, anxiety, and resistance [4].
How do you change a bad safety culture?
Changing the Hidden Safety Culture
- Start fresh with self honesty.
- Develop a discomfort strategy.
- Perceive those things that cannot be seen.
- Heed renowned quality guru Edwards Deming.
- Surface hidden mixed messages and reduce them.
- Look for grassroots fixes.
- Practice pattern recognition.
- Leverage leadership.
Why is change management needed?
To help minimize those impacts and effects, from having unintended negative outcomes, it is necessary to have “change management” and transition methodologies in place with skilled resources delivering and executing on those methodologies. This helps to minimize possible negative outcomes and increase positive results.
What is the purpose of change management?
The primary goal of change management is to successfully implement new processes, products and business strategies while minimizing negative outcomes.
What are the risks to workers during change?
Numerous studies and historical data shows that the safety risks to workers during change is many times higher than during routine production operations. Workforce safety is one of the biggest concerns that go along with managing organizational change.
When to use change management in your workplace?
To be effective, change management must be used if the necessary revisions and actions are to be effectively implemented. These should be viewed within the framework an Occupational Health and Safety Management Process (OHSM), i.e., the ANSI Z10.) Too often,…
How is change management approach to improving safety and quality?
Current policy requires NHS Trusts to take a longer view of their services and adopt a Five Year Forward View, inclusive of a more engaged relationship with patients and to champion best practice as a way to encourage a culture of quality improvement (NHS England, 2014).
How to get your managers and employees involved in safety?
Identify champions from the management and employee ranks. Involve them in problem-solving, safety observations, workplace inspections, and in training. Communicate the results widely and cultivate a culture that values and rewards these efforts. Gayla J. McCluskey, CIH, CSP, ROH, QEP, Principal, Global Environmental Health Services 9.
