Poblocki Paving has spent more than 40 years building a reputation for excellent work. But, when it came to safety, they were continually frustrated with the injuries that were occurring on job sites. The elevated frequency of injuries was impacting employees' quality of life and costing the company a significant amount of money. So, in 2006, John Poblocki and HNI partnered to tackle one of the wickedest problems: culture. 

A PLAN TO DE-RISK 

Shifting a culture is one of the most challenging journeys a company can embark on. But, as John and HNI soon concluded, instilling a "safety accountability" mindset was the only way to get measurable results.  

The first step in this process was to create a Safety Committee that would reinforce WHY safety should be of upmost importance to each and every person. Employees visited with the Safety Committee one at a time to discuss how workplace safety impacts them, their families, and the company. Several employees even took lead roles to help evangelize the message.

The second part of the plan was about tactically executing on specific safety initiatives. Key components of the tactical plan included:

• Finding the best way to deliver safety instructions and guidelines. To do this, a communication strategy was developed that ensured that every communication was repeated across multiple channels and was designed to be as clear and concise as possible.
• Regular job site visits to improve behaviors, not find fault. Trust was built! 
• Establishing an Annual Kickoff meeting for continuous learning. The employees know exactly where Poblocki stands relative to loss costs, their MOD, and property damage. Incidents are studied and prevention tactics instituted live with all employees.
• Founding an annual Snow Meeting to train employees on how to avoid incident in winter weather conditions. 

BOOSTED PERFORMANCE

ExplainingWHY safety matters, combined with the consistent delivery of safety messages that reinforce HOW to work in a safe manner, has impacted the behaviors of Poblocki's workforce. It has also noticeably changed what it feels like to work at Poblocki Paving.  

Through the dedication of Poblocki’s leadership team and complete employee buy-in, their work comp MOD is the lowest it has ever been. Today, Poblocki's Total Cost of Risk (TCOR) is 50% less than the average asphalt company, which provides a significant competitive advantage. 

"The insurance markets don't determine our pricing. Our behaviors do."

John Poblocki, CEO  

 

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