Fair and equal application of rules/ regulations/ law is at the heart of safety and health programs. In the workplace we are all held to the same standards of accountability. If violating lockout-tagout requirements is identified by the organization as a termination offense, it doesn’t matter (should not matter) who the culprit is. If stealing company property or intentionally endangering others are termination offenses, it shouldn’t matter who the culprit is.
But equal treatment does not automatically result in equal outcomes. We are manifestly not all the same. We do not have the same abilities, drive, resilience, or wants and needs. We clearly do not have equal height, hand-eye coordination, foot speed, extraversion, health, IQ, grades in school… the list of ways in which we differ from each other is virtually endless.