Forklift News - SAFETY FIRST: DAVID HOOVER

As a father of two children I am constantly looking for ways to motivate my kids to be polite, helpful and safe. I have found a great motivational tool: positive reinforcement.

The old saying "you catch more flies with honey than vinegar" seems to hold true. If I really want to shape their behaviour, I get them working towards a positive reward such as a later bedtime or more play time and then make a big deal out of it when they "earn" the reward.

I also use negative reinforcement, such as reducing play time, but only as a last resort. Normally the positive works better and lasts longer.

You're probably wondering what this has to do with safe forklift operations. Let me explain.

If you were called into your manager's office tomorrow and told "you are doing a decent job, I think we'll keep you around another year", how would you feel? If you had worked hard and done your best, you might feel disappointed, unappreciated and maybe even angry, right?

That is exactly how many highly-skilled forklift operators feel today. I come across people like this all the time: they are smart, extremely skilled and make their companies run like well-oiled machines, but nobody seems to notice.

Year in and year out they stack and store materials safely and efficiently, which makes their company profitable, but who cares? No wonder morale is so low in many companies and industries today.

Here are some ideas to motivate your forklift operators:

1) Hold a safe operation award (like the "million mile awards" some companies give truck drivers). Make it tough to achieve but not impossible, so only the best achieve it (not the guy who hits the building column every day). Put up some cash or a prize and recognise winners in the company newsletter or at a function. Recognition is a very powerful positive reinforcement, maybe even more so than money.
2) Organise a forklift rodeo (I prefer the words "forklift skills challenge", but that's just me). This might be just your company or you might include everyone in your industrial park. Set up real life courses, such as trailer loading, stacking, and manoeuvring, and grade operators' safe operation and efficiency with an emphasis on safety. Award trophies and recognise the winners by getting them in the local paper or on local TV. Everyone likes to show their skills and this gives forklift operators a chance to do just that.
3) Get operators' input on how to improve safety and reduce materials handling expenses. Put up cash rewards and incentives for great ideas. If the company is going to save $10,000 as a result, I think you can cough up $250 for the idea. This will make operators feel they are part of your team.

If you have other unique ways your company positively reinforces safe forklift operation or rewards drivers, please let me know and I'll put together a list for a future article.

David Hoover is president of Forklift Training Systems Inc, a US safety company specialising in site and forklift safety training, training trainers, custom program development and cutting-edge forklift safety products. Contact David Hoover

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