Let me get on my soap box once again here preaching the value of supervision and accountability. Operating a lift truck in a safe manner is part of the job of a lift truck operator, and therefore, they need to be held accountable when they are observed not doing their jobs. Ensuring that lift truck operators are driving safely is part of the job of supervisors and managers, and therefore, they need to be held accountable if they fail to hold the lift truck operators accountable. I don't mean to oversimplify this, but it really is that simple. If you fail to hold people accountable, they will do as they please (and this goes far beyond safety). If you start holding people accountable, everything changes.

I frequently see supervisors and managers totally overwhelmed by the chaos created by a lack of control, yet it's their own fault for looking the other way when their employees don't follow the rules. Sure it takes a little extra effort initially to stop a lift truck operator when you see him doing something he is not supposed to, but once you do this a few times (and move to disciplinary steps if necessary), they will start following the rules. And this doesn't mean that you're going to have to go through this process with every employee. Once they see you are serious, they will change their ways. I have been through this on multiple occasions (at different operations) and it works every time. And once you see how easy it is, you will wonder what the **** you were thinking all those years when you were looking the other way.

Technology that helps force people to be safe is great, but you can't get technology to control every aspect of their job. There's nothing wrong with requiring workers to do their job the way they are instructed to do their job. You will find that you actually have a happier workforce under these conditions.