Occupational Safety in the 21st Century: Challenges and Solutions

Occupational Safety in an Era of Turbulence: From Reactivity to Risk Management

The modern world is experiencing the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, characterized by globalization, digitalization, and an exponential growth of anthropogenic risks. Under these conditions, risk management becomes synonymous with managing the company's future. During the session "From Challenges to HSE Opportunities in Conditions of Turbulence," Serik Mashkenov, Candidate of Physical and Mathematical Sciences and Leading Researcher at the All-Russian Research Institute of Labor, analyzes in detail why traditional approaches to occupational safety no longer work and how the new risk-oriented model is changing the rules of the game.

Transformation of the State Occupational Safety Management System

Since March 1, 2022, Russia has transitioned to a new occupational safety management model based on proactivity, risk-oriented, process-based, and human-centric approaches. The speaker emphasizes that the significant reduction in regulatory legal acts (by 15 times) is not a weakening of control, but a conscious step by the state. In conditions of turbulence, it is impossible to effectively manage processes from a single center. The goal of the new model is to bring decision-making centers as close as possible to the sources of hazards, giving employers the freedom to choose ways to achieve a safe result, taking into account the specifics of their enterprises.

Risk-Oriented and Process Approaches in Practice

The new management structure includes 27 processes grouped into five categories. The key insight of the presentation: the special assessment of working conditions (SAWC) and occupational risk assessment (ORA) now determine the content and scope of all other processes. No activity in the field of occupational safety makes sense if it does not directly or indirectly affect the reduction of specific risks. The process approach requires the completion of every stage — from hazard identification to the implementation and control of protective measures. Documenting the results of risk assessments becomes the basis for forming corporate memory and developing action plans.

Two Vectors of Safety: Working Conditions and Behavioral Culture

The speaker demonstrates with an example that the improvement of occupational safety management should proceed along two parallel directions. The first is the creation of safe conditions in the workplace, where the objects of management are equipment, materials, and humans as physical objects. The second direction is the level of safe performance of labor functions, where a human is considered as a subject with their own will, goals, and interests. The combination of high results in both directions allows achieving the concept of "work without injuries and accidents."

Barriers on the Path to Zero Harm

The presentation details the key barriers hindering effective safety management:

• Formalization of risk assessment: Unlike SAWC, which has clear measurement algorithms, occupational risk assessment often suffers from a lack of formalized procedures, making its digitization and automation difficult.
• Management by objectives: Traditional reactive indicators (e.g., the number of injuries per year) do not show exactly how the company achieved this result — through systematic work or by sheer luck. Proactive indicators are needed for daily monitoring.
• Effective communication: The root cause of most accidents is poor communication. Workers are often told what to do, but not explained why it is important, leading to a misunderstanding of meanings and, consequently, to injuries.
• Quality selection and onboarding: When hiring, it is necessary to consider a candidate's propensity for risky behavior. Competent onboarding and mentoring are critically important for the safe introduction of an employee into the production environment.

Safety as a Driver of Business Efficiency

Occupational safety in the 21st century is not just a supporting function, but a central element of a successful business. The speaker uses the metaphor of the "Russian troika," where productivity and efficiency are the trace horses, and safety is the shaft horse. Focusing solely on productivity leads to "functional blindness" and a loss of long-term perspective. Occupational safety, based on strict discipline, is a universal indicator of the overall manageability of the company. Investments in safety create a sustainable organization capable of generating high results over a long period.

What You Will Learn from This Webinar:

• How does the new risk-oriented legislative model change the employer's responsibilities and opportunities?
• Why should occupational risk assessment become the foundation for all occupational safety processes in the company?
• What barriers hinder the implementation of a safety culture and how to overcome them in practice?
• How to properly build a communication system so that workers understand the meaning of safety requirements?
• Why is the subordination of the occupational safety department to the top executive critically important for business efficiency?