The job of safety supervisor can be a frustrating one, don't you think? Every day we try to convince our workers to take precautions like using respiratory protection when mixing cement. If you're in construction, I'm guessing you know what I mean. You try every argument in the book - citing rules, evoking common sense and even playing the family card to appeal to workers' emotions. We're constantly doing and saying the same things over and over again. I sometimes feel like I'm following the instructions on the back of a shampoo bottle: wash, rinse, repeat. We all have our reasons for doing this job. But are we wasting our time in a thankless profession? A recent conversation I had caused me to confront this question.

A Moment of Doubt

Last year, an acquaintance of mine, somebody with many years of experience and for whom I have great respect, asked me why I had gotten into such a thankless career. His question caught me off guard. I hadn't thought of my job as being thankless and didn't think anybody else would either. When I asked him to explain, he pointed out that my success was judged ultimately on decisions that other people make. I might not be directly involved in the choices, but if an incident occurs as a result, everyone will turn to me.

I walked away from the conversation a little disturbed. He seemed to have a point. What is the point of all this, I wondered. I mean, these workers never thank me for the job I'm doing or appreciate the advice I give them. Often, those of us in this position are seen merely as the hindrance. It's "great, here comes the safety guy. I wonder what I'm doing wrong this time."

The conversation struck a chord and caused a little doubt to set in. Although I wasn't about to quit, I did take an objective look at my choice of profession. It made me step back and think about the 30+ working years I have ahead of me.

What Other Thankless Jobs Are Out There?

Just out of curiosity, I did an Internet search for the most thankless jobs. I didn't expect to see any safety jobs on the list. I just wanted to see what other thankless jobs people do. (I was also mildly ashamed of doubting - even for a moment - my choice of being a supervisor and needed a kick in the butt).

As I worked my way down the listed jobs, I realized how thankful I was that I wasn't doing any of them. Not because they were beneath me, but because I realized that my job was much more rewarding than the ones on the list. Of course, I mean no offence to anyone, but IRS agent? You talk about thankless. I don't think IRS agents get too many thank you's at the end of the day.

Recommitting to the Profession

So why did I give in so easily to this person's comments and not jump to my feet and defend how great my job was? It could just have been that I was tired and not in the mood. Or it could have been something much different than that - an evil word called complacency. (See SafetyXChange article on how not to become complacent, October 20, 2005 by Corey Jones.) I needed to recharge and revisit what I was doing.

I realized that I had fallen out of good habits that I had formerly sworn by. One of those habits was taking lunch or coffee breaks with the workers in the trenches. It was often during these breaks that I had received the most useful information about what was really going on on-site. The majority of tradespeople on-site will not come to you. You have to go to them. Before, I had made it a habit to do so. But complacency had set in and I wasn't doing this anymore. And, as a result, I wasn't getting as much feedback as I used to.

I also took this moment of clarity as an opportunity to re-immerse myself in leadership and management books. In the past, I have learned new managing and communicating techniques from these books. But upon cracking the books this time, I was surprised to see that most of the things the authors were recommending were methods I already use - or used to use when I wasn't so complacent. I realized that I knew how to be a good leader and communicator. I just had to get back to doing it. In addition to reaffirming my career choice, this experience renewed my confidence and inspired me to get back out there and do the job the way I knew how to do it.

Conclusion

Let's face it, everyone likes a pat on the back once in a while. Some of us need it more than others. But I suspect most of us in the safety profession feel that we don't get the kudos we think we deserve. If it's verbal thank-you's and praise you need, then ours is indeed a thankless job.

But remember that reaffirmation can and must come not just from others but from within ourselves. We, as safety supervisors, just need to step back and remind ourselves of the importance of what we do. That should make us feel good about ourselves and the job we do. More importantly, it should inspire us to renew our commitment to use all our skills, habits and experience to do the job as effectively as we can.

Editor's Note: Have you ever had cause to doubt your choice of going into safety? We'd like to hear about your experience. Please send a brief description to catherinej@bongarde.com . We won't use your name or company unless you specifically say we can.

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