I'm probably repeating what I have mentioned in other safety threads here but I firmly believe that active supervision is by far the most important part of your safety program. Gadgets like impact switches/alarms sell like hotcakes but are usually eventually turned off or tuned down to the point where they never go off because of the annoyances of frequent false alarms. Keypad starter systems designed to prevent unauthorized use are the best example of crutches used by companies that are afraid of their employees. If you tell you're employees they will lose their job if they use a piece of equipment they are not authorized to use (and you mean it), they will not use the equipment. That's really all it takes.

I'm a big proponent of employee training, but without accountability, training doesn't mean a **** of a lot. I've gone into plenty of places where operators weren't using vehicle restraint systems (wheel chocks or other), weren't using their seatbelts, were driving too fast, were riding around on man-up equipment without their safety harnesses, were having a couple of guys stand on the back of the lift truck to help move a load beyond the capacity of the truck, lifting people on the forks, etc. All (well most at least) of these workers understood what they were doing was not in line with how they were trained and I would bet that if an OSHA inspector was there (and they knew he was an OSHA inspector) they would immediately (though temporarily) change their behavior.

They were doing all this unsafe stuff because they were allowed to do it, not because they didn't know it was wrong. And you would be amazed how little effort is required to correct this. If supervisors/managers stop and discipline employees for not obeying the rules, it will stop immediately. It does not require endless hours spying on the operators. If your operators are not following the rules, you'll spot it pretty quickly. If they know they will be disciplined for not following the rules, they will follow the rules.

And you shouldn't need to "reward" workers for following the rules. I like incentive programs for productivity and quality/accuracy where workers can be rewarded by performing above and beyond the base standard. With safety, I don't really see how you can have "safer" workers. You have workers that follow the safety practices you put forth (the rules) and those that don't. Those that don't, shouldn't be working for you. Those that do, are just doing their jobs.