Accidents in the workplace are most often a result of the combination of unsafe working conditions and unsafe operator behaviour. Unsafe working conditions consist of inadequate safety measures in the workplace or missing parts in the equipment. Unsafe behaviour of the operators can be influenced by various factors that lead them away from sticking to the standard operating procedure. Unsafe behaviour can also be attributed to a lack of experience, thus using improper protective gear or not having a good understanding of the workflow.
Ofcourse, the cause of any accident runs deeper than the immediate cause. It is important to identify the combination of unsafe conditions and unsafe behaviour that lead to the occurrence of a particular accident. Once this exercise of identification is performed it can be ensured that the same accident does not repeat itself by taking suitable measures against it. This approach leads the company to figure out the root cause of any accident that might occur and is a powerful tool to promote safety by eliminating both unsafe conditions and unsafe behaviour.