Discussion Questions

1. Apply the MARS model to explain how Mother Parkers improves safety in the workplace.

2. What other organizational behavior topics are generally apparent in this description of how Mother Parkers creates a safe workplace?

provements that could be planned for." their an issue." Khan observes. to 1 CASE STUDY: PROMOTING SAFE BEHAVIOR AT MOTHER PARKERS By Steven L. McShane, University of Newcastle (Australia) implemented immediately, and also a list of longer-term im. A special cross-functional team developed from these ergo blitzes," whose members now serve as role models for safety behavior and as valuable sources of safety knowledge. "This creates a go-to group of operators on the floor that Peers feel comfortable with and can go to if they want Employee involvement also generates employee com- Most companies try to create a safe work environment, but few are as dedicated as Mother Parkers Tea & Coffee Inc. As North America's largest private label coffee producer, Mother Parkers infuses safety knowledge, awareness, and engagement in every employee and contractor. "One of our priorities here has been to provide a safe workplace to our employees," says Adrian Khan, Mother Parkers' Senior Manager of Environmental Health, Safety, and Security report for North America. "They make a commitment to us to help produce great quality products, we make a commit- to safety. "There's a high level of engagement mitment ment to them to provide them with a safe working here," says a Mother Parkers production manager. "The environment." have been developing most of the procedures operators cleaning, quality checks, and To begin with, Mother Parkers creates a physically safe for equipment. The operators take ownership of their po. work environment through well-designed barriers and cues at its award-winning automated production facilities in sitions." Mike Bate, Mother Parkers vice president of hu- Fort Worth, Texas, and Ontario, Canada. The production man resources, notes that employees are more motivated floor includes physical barriers to separate people from to act safely because the company pays attention to their moving equipment. Safe walking areas are brightly marked, ideas. "Our health and safety committees are now en- including specific spots where people must stop and look gaged, they have plans, they have ideas, people's voices get both ways before crossing forklift travel areas. At eye level heard. And when they bring issues on the table, those is- next to doors are signs specifying what equipment (shoes, sues get dealt with and they get addressed and they are eyewear, etc.) must be worn before entering the next area. part of the planning process." lighti systems superior visibility and Another way that Mother Parkers promotes workplace eye comfort safety is by continuously reminding everyone that safety Another way that Mother Parkers supports safe behavior is an important of everyone's job. This message oc- is by investing in employee training. Staff learn safety proce curs through ongoing safety training, employee involve- dures before they are allowed to enter the production floor. ment in ergonomic risk prevention, and the presence of They also learn about new safety technology and practices numerous workplace safety cues. Reminding everyone from community experts at special health and safety day about safety is even a daily event. "Safety is the core of events everything we do here." explains the production manager Employee involvement is an important part of safety im of Mother Parkers' award-winning RealCup operations. provement at Mother Parkers. Employees participate in safety issues so decisions are based on a full complement of "We begin our production meetings and shift handovers by talking about safety." knowledge from employees, not just from management and Safety-focused safety." outside experts. "We wanted to empower the operators to tely focused expectations also extend to contractors, recognize hazards in their work area, voice those concerns, all of whom complete a safety training program before and to be a part of the solutions," says Khan, who recently their projects begin. "We set expectations and standards with contractors won a national safety leadership award. "When it comes be on site at Mother Parkers from a health and safety down to it, they are the experts running the machines who know exactly what the hazards are in the workplace. For perspective," says Mike Bate. "Before they even get ap- example, when the company decided to buy an ergonomic they have to registere and work with us as a contractor roll lifter (a machine holds and transports heavy rolls have to register themselves to say they have gone of metal), employees on the ergonomics team tested many of the roll lifters on the market to determine which one was the best fit for their application. Mother Parkers has held numerous "ergonomic blitzes," whereby an external consultant and production staff con- duct an intensive review of health and safety concerns in each specific work area. "We jump-started our program by having ergonomics blitz events so that the team could 'Find It' (hazards). 'Fix It'(countermeasures), and 'Check It (happy operators)." says Khan. "From there, the team would have a number of short-term solutions that could be part of through this education. So by the time they arrive. [con- tractors understand the risks, they bring the proper pro tective equipment that may be required, or they understand what they need from us to make the workplace safe for them to work in." Discussion Questions 1. Apply the MARS model to explain how Mother Parkers improves safety in the workplace 2. What other organizational behavior topics are generally apparent in this description of how Mother Parkers creates a safe workplace? 32