In championing safer workplaces, it’s only natural to want to celebrate the wins. This includes any improvements in the metrics around site safety, such as reductions in injuries and hazardous incidents.
You’ll likely want to tell your employees, so they can know that their efforts are paying off, as well as any other parties with an interest in how well your business is doing on health and safety, including contractors, suppliers and site visitors.
But, rather than helping it, could making too much of this information actually risk ruining your health and safety strategy?
Read on to find out more…
The ‘X days since injury’ incentive
In the past, companies have tended towards openly showcasing and celebrating the number of days (or weeks, or months!) since their last reported incident, injury or hazardous incident.
While this might look impressive to visitors, it is not without its risks.
Yes, there is an argument that it reminds employees of the bigger picture goal to which they are expected to contribute, and it is unlikely that any individual employee is going to want to risk undermining that by engaging in unsafe working practices. The visual recognition of the collective effort towards establishing a safer workplace can also be gratifying for many people, helping to encourage a better safety culture in the workplace.
‘X days since injury’: The risks
However, where companies rely on hard and fast single metrics like the number of days since the last reported incident, it is always going to lead to the risk of underreporting. This is especially true if success in improving on that metric is linked to employee reward.
People are driven by incentives, so it is possible that workers might choose to deliberately hide incidents and injuries that – if reported – might jeopardize or remove their eligibility for a safety incentive reward. In the case of group bonuses or rewards, there could be peer pressure to hide an accident so as not to ‘mess things up’ for the wider team or group.
Another risk posed by this type of safety incentives programme is the risk of reduced ownership, where workers shy away from taking responsibility for tasks perceived as slightly more hazardous or likely to have an incident associated with them, out of fear of jeopardising their access to a reward. This can affect overall productivity and efficiency as well as actually increase the risk of incidents occurring in those areas if less experienced staff are given the responsibility instead.
Designing good safety incentives programmes
So, if publicising how long it has been since your workplace’s last incident or injury isn’t necessarily the way to go, what does work when it comes to safety incentives programmes?
At iSB Group, our top tips for success are:
#1 Be comprehensive
The best safety incentives programmes encompass a variety of short, medium and long-term goals. This gives people the opportunity to choose where to focus their efforts and the commitment to a general direction of travel over a single pass/fail target makes it easier to maintain momentum and employee enthusiasm over time.
Remember: It takes anywhere from 21 days to two months for a habit to form and, without support, it’s easy to slip back into old ways. Keeping employees engaged in your workplace safety efforts over time is key to long-term success.
#2 Set realistic targets
Focus on encouraging positive safety change over time, rather than falling into the trap of committing to hard and fast metrics. Instead of publicising how many days it has been since the last safety incident or injury, why not work to reduce overall injuries by 2% each quarter or 5% each year?
#3 Encourage employee input
Empower your employees to put forward their ideas and observations on how you could improve safety at your workplace by including a confidential or anonymous method for sharing their views. This will also help to encourage people to raise any concerns they might have, without fear of reprisals.
#4 Reward learning
Consider implementing rewards for workers that complete safety training. This will help to encourage a culture of learning, where individuals and teams are motivated to expand their familiarity with safety standards and knowledge of safety procedures. In the longer term, this increased knowledge will help to reduce accidents and injuries as people become increasingly risk aware and tend towards choosing the safest ways of working.
Building safer workplaces
Although safety incentives programmes are not without their controversies, their aim remains genuine. They are intended to encourage awareness of safety procedures and provide extra motivation for employees to adhere to protocols.
The combination of strategic goal setting and positive reinforcement through recognising accomplishments and rewarding safe behaviours can be a powerful motivator when used in the right way.
This means that safety incentives programmes can work – when designed and implemented well, employing strategies that foster a positive work environment, increase employee engagement and communication, and allow for long term, sustainable results.
If you’re considering implementing a new safety incentives programme for your team, we can help you make sure you’ve covered all the bases and mitigated any risks – just give us a call and we’ll be happy to advise!
Posted 2 Oct 2025
