How To Keep Employees From Pencil Whipping Inspections

Pencil whipping is a commonly used term in the safety industry that describes the bad practice of completing checklists or inspection forms, e.g., "checking the boxes", without actually performing the thorough inspections required. There are many reasons why pencil whipping an audit or inspection remains prevalent to this day, with the first and foremost being a non-committal attitude toward safety. Otherwise, it is usually due to inadequate training or a lack of time or resources.

Regardless of the cause, pencil whipping is a pressing issue and among the leading causes of compromised workplace safety, as it invites a greater risk of accidents and injuries. Successfully nipping this problem in the bud is no easy feat, but with the following tips, organisations can start on the right foot towards eradicating this damaging practice.

 

1. Communicate the purpose

A motivating purpose or vision that resonates with employees is the foundation that makes a safety inspection programme highly effective. Organisations that neglect to establish the reason behind their employees' actions make it harder for the latter to take ownership of those practices.

Moreover, leaders should emphasise and exhibit that at-risk findings will not be used to assign blame but rather drive safety improvements. This requires positively reinforcing the culture of reporting hazards and responding quickly to said concerns.

By eliminating the negative impacts of the inspection process, employees can truly understand how their actions affect everyone in the workplace and stifle any thoughts of taking shortcuts like pencil whipping.

 

2. Provide comprehensive training

From safe lifting operations to the latest hazard recognition and control best practices, safety inspectors need comprehensive training that covers all the technical aspects of their role. Specifically, this training should encompass the hazards and risks specific to the organisation's workplace, the protocols for evaluating and mitigating risks, and any other relevant safety regulations and standards. Lastly, inspectors should also receive training to further their soft skills like communication and teamwork, which can empower them to conduct thorough inspections with the aid of effective dialogue.

 

3. Implement quality control measures

Quality control (QC) is key to ensuring the accuracy and thoroughness of every inspection in the workplace. These can include supervisor reviews, random audits, and checks for consistency in findings. Using QC measures helps organisations identify opportunities for correction and improvement and, more importantly, uncover indicators of potential pencil whipping.

 

4. Remove incentives

Incentives like bonuses or gift cards are detrimental to the work of safety inspectors as they are proven to lead to simple paper-pushing exercises and poor output that lacks quality control measurements or accountability.

This is because employees inherently prioritise what is in their best interest, so if they meet a certain metric that is recognised as a success and get rewarded for it, they will naturally prioritise and put more effort into "quantity" over "quality."

 

5. Make progress visible

Organisations need to immediately act on safety findings once they are submitted, as it demonstrates their commitment to using the input to address problems in the workplace. Seeing that action is being taken makes employees feel that their work and efforts are validated and actually mean something. This is a great way to positively reinforce the workforce to go beyond the minimum requirement when it comes to safety, furthering the culture of hazard recognition and submission of findings.

 

Conclusion

Pencil whipping in safety inspection programmes is a recipe for disaster, which is why its remediation takes top priority. This endeavour requires a total commitment to safety and adopting a multi-faceted approach that addresses all potential root causes, most importantly, any incentives that encourage prioritising the quantity and not the quality of completed inspections. Hopefully, the combination of the strategies discussed above helps to promote the understanding and importance of following through with the established safety measures in your workplace.

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