Richard F. Kayser, Chief Safety Officer

Director, Office of Safety, Health, and Environment (OSHE)

NIST Visiting Committee on Advanced Technology

Gaithersburg, MD

February 4, 2015

NIST SAFETY UPDATE
Agenda

2

2013 VCAT 

RECOMMENDATIONS

NIST RESPONSES DISCUSSION
3

2 0 1 3 V C A T R E C O M M E N D A T I O N S

Establish a Slips, Trips, and Falls Baseline

Establish a baseline to measure the success of efforts to reduce 

slips, trips, and falls. Report to the VCAT regularly on progress. 

Expand the NIST Shared Standard

Expand the number of common safety issues included in the

NIST Shared Standard of Safety Performance. 

Demonstrate the Success of the Shared Standard

Implement metrics to demonstrate the success of the Shared 

Standard program in eliminating common safety issues at NIST. 

Conduct Safety Culture Survey

Conduct a safety culture survey to assess progress in making safety an integral core 

value and vital part of the NIST culture. Compare the results to those of the safety 

climate survey completed in June 2011.

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a

1

2

3

4
VCAT RECOMMENDATION

E S T A B L I S H A S L I P S , T R I P S , A N D F A L L S B A S E L I N E
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6

VCAT RECOMMENDATION

E X P A N D T H E N I S T S H A R E D S T A N D A R D

FREQUENTLY 

USED ITEMS

HEAVY ITEMS

STACKED 

ITEMS

HALLWAY AND 

STAIRWELLS

LIQUID 

CHEMICALS

Keep stacks of 

stored items 

lower than eye 

level.

SAFE STORAGE PRACTICES

Store liquid 

chemicals and 

corrosives below 

eye level.

Store commonly 

used items 

between shoulder 

and eye level.

Store heavy 

items at 

lower levels.

Do not store items 

in hallways and 

stairwells.
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VCAT RECOMMENDATION

I M P L E M E N T M E T R I C S T O 

D E M O N S T R A T E T H E S U C C E S S 

O F T H E S H A R E D S T A N D A R D

Tracking of 

results in a NIST 

database

Annual 

inspections of 

all other work 

areas

OU-led teams 

of trained 

inspectors

Semi-annual 

inspections of 

hazardous 

work areas

Participation 

by OSHE

ENHANCED WORKPLACE INSPECTION PROGRAM

TRACK PROGRESS IN ELIMINATING THEM

FOCUS ON SHARED STANDARD ISSUES

IDENTIFY POTENTIAL NEW ISSUES 
Communicated

Planned Actions

Identified 

Possible Actions

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VCAT RECOMMENDATION

C O N D U C T S A F E T Y C L I M A T E S U R V E Y

NOVEMBER

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER JANUARY

DECEMBER

Completed Analysis of 

Survey Results

Decided on 

Planned Actions

Employee 

Engagement

Adequacy of 

Resources

Management 

Commitment

Personal Responsibility 

for OTHERS Safety

Personal Responsibility 

for OWN Safety
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PLANNED ACTIONS

01 EMPLOYEE RIGHTS

Improve communication to employees 

of their safety rights.

02 UNSAFE CONDITIONS AND PRACTICES

Provide guidance on addressing unsafe conditions 

and practices.

03 INCIDENT REPORTING & 

LESSONS LEARNED

Implement improved incident reporting processes and 

mechanisms for sharing lessons learned.

04

SAFETY TRAINING

Improve the quality of safety training.

05

MANAGEMENT OBSERVATIONS

Incorporate discussions of safety culture 

issues into management observations.

06

PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS

Re-emphasize the importance of employees 

receiving safety performance feedback during 

performance appraisals. 
10

[
Backup Slides
Comparison to DOE Peers
Comparison to DOE Peers

13
46%

2011

60%

2014

Other NIST 

Sites

Total Participation Site Participation 

61%

Gaithersburg

60%

Boulder

46%

Other

OU Participation Total Responses

1,908

896

38% to 100v %

Respondents

Comments

Safety Climate Assessment Participation
Comparison to FY 2011 SCA

N I cannot always get the equipment I need to do my job safely. 3.78 4.01 6.1%

P I receive safety performance feedback during my annual employee evaluation. 3.47 3.67 5.9%

P I am clear about what my responsibilities are for safety and health. 4.12 4.33 5.2%

P Managers and supervisors express concern if safety procedures are not adhered to. 4.08 4.28 4.9%

N When people ignore safety procedures, it is none of my business. 4.25 4.37 2.8%

P There are always enough people available to get the job done safely. 3.59 3.68 2.5%

N Sometimes I am not given enough time to get the job done safely. 4.01 4.07 1.5%

N Sometimes it is necessary to depart from safety requirements for work’s sake. 3.96 4.02 1.5%

N Some safety rules and procedures don’t need to be followed to get the job done safely. 3.74 3.77 0.9%

N In my workplace, the chances of being involved in an accident are quite high. 4.12 4.13 0.2%

P I am strongly encouraged to report unsafe conditions. 4.23 4.20 -0.8%

P I am involved in informing management of important safety issues. 3.83 3.80 -0.8%

P There is good communication about safety issues that affect me. 3.93 3.87 -1.5%

P Co-workers often give tips to each other on how to work safely. 3.73 3.59 -3.8%

N Some health and safety rules are not really practical. 3.24 3.01 -7.0%

2011 2014 % Improved

Top 10

Bottom 10

Liekert Scoring: Top score=5, bottom score=1