Hurry Up Can Hurt Safety

Hurry Up Can Hurt

Almost everyone has been guilty of speeding through a job. We forget, until it’s too late, that “hurry up can hurt”. In just about every instance, hurrying on the job does not do much to increase productivity. Usually it is simply an easy way to get a job done get a tough job out of the way – or try to get off the job as soon as possible.

When we hurry on the job, we accomplish little more than to increase our chances of an unsafe act happening. Let’s look at some hurry up acts. Which ones have you caught yourself doing?

  • Didn’t wear safety glasses because the job would only take a few minutes
  • Used the wrong ladder because the proper one was too far away
  • Didn’t use proper lockout procedures because you could fix it yourself and wouldn’t have to bother anyone else
  • Removed a guard to repair your machine, or for a special run, but haven’t got around to putting it back yet
  • Reached “just-a-little-bit-further” on the ladder so you didn’t have to get down and move it
  • Didn’t unplug a power tool before making adjustments because you would only have to plug it in again
  • Used a dull saw blade for just one more cut.

The list is endless. Do they sound familiar? Too familiar? Sometimes when you hurry, nothing bad happens. Other times there may be “near misses”, but eventually a serious injury will occur. It is only a matter of time. Is it really worth your eyesight, your limbs or even your life to save those few minutes?

When hurrying on the job, you don’t end up speeding up the work, you just speed up your chances of an accident.

Hurry up can hurt