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Accountability for Safety 2003
Safety performance is a core value at our company. It is a deep-seeded value that can not be compromised. We recognize that only through a commitment to safety can we achieve our long-standing goal of accomplishing our daily jobs with zero preventable recordable injuries. Unfortunately, although our preventable recordable injuries declined in 2003, our total recordable injuries increased. This increase, which adds 16 additional cases, was the result of new criteria implemented by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) concerning employee hearing loss. Additionally, the APS Severity Incident Rate dramatically increased as the result of two employee injuries requiring a collective 305 days away from work to rehabilitate. In 2003, 130 employees sustained an OSHA recordable injury.
Accidents occur for a variety of reasons, some preventable and some non-preventable. However, accidents are not inevitable. The Pinnacle West/APS Safety and Health Advisory Team has evaluated the adverse 2003 trend using a modified Hiendrich Safety Pyramid model of reporting employee events. The Safety Pyramid for 2003 helps us to understand that the reporting of close call events is disproportionate to injuries reported. The team has determined that the best way to reduce the number of injury accidents and their severity is to place a greater emphasis on close call reporting and trending. Based on developing close-call trends, appropriate action can be taken to prevent injuries.
Our commitment to “Accountability For Safety” showed a distinct relationship between the severity of injuries and close call events. As a result, we promote employee reporting of close call events for the purpose of sharing the information with all employees. It is believed that by publicizing this relationship in daily statistical reports, we will be able to decrease the number of errors resulting in injuries.
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