THE Macquarie Dictionary defines blame as: “v. to lay responsibility of (a fault, error etc.) on a person, n. imputation of fault; censure …from the Latin blasphemare …” Regarding the last word, draw your own conclusions!
We have all been blamed for something at some time. It has been argued that this is part of life, or in the modern idiom “harden up princess!”
Since the first stone was dropped on the overseer’s foot during the construction of the pyramids, blame and safety have shared an uneasy and entirely inappropriate partnership
Unfortunately the tendency to sheet the blame home to an individual or group of individuals, particularly after a safety incident, remains with us and it is not hard to see why.
It’s a quick fix, the accuser feels good, and others involved directly or indirectly in the incident have a focus to vent their frustrations, anger or grief.
Unfortunately the cause of the incident, while it may be reported, is left to drift until a repeat occurs months or years later. No lessons have been learned and the cause itself may remain disputed.
Rightly or wrongly there is an increasing trend for legislation both in Australia and abroad to use the criminal law to prosecute those employers or employees who have deliberately flouted or ignored standard OHS practice.
“Corporate manslaughter” is a current buzz word in the legal world and has unsettled businesses with fear of jail and/or punitive fines.
It is important that Army continues to home in on causes, rather than people, in its investigations into OH&S incidents, accidents or breaches of legislation.
We still pay lip service to a “no blame” culture, but in the heat of the moment or in catastrophic failures people continue to be rapidly singled out for crimes of commission or omission.
Less effort is directed to looking at inadequate training, equipment failure, fatigue, tempo and other issues. Army addresses this through the cultivation of an open and fair culture backed up by increasingly professional safety audit and investigation tools.
Next time someone runs into the back of your vehicle or a soldier forgets to organise mornos, stop and think – perhaps there was a fog or your brake lights weren’t working; and perhaps you had forgotten to warn out the soldier, gave confused orders, or the soldier might not have received your email.
