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An unplanned event that did not result in injury, illness, or damage, but had the potential to do so — are common but generally underreported. Knowledge is power, and information provided by near-misses is a tool to evaluate and improve safety.

Let us step back and reflect on the sweat, blood and tears that built this great nation. Think about the men and women that gave their lives. Labor Day is the day for us to remember these great workers. We should celebrate their lives, accomplishments, learn from their mistakes, and hold them in great regard every day of the year.

Fourteen tons of fireworks illuminated the New York night on May 24, 1883, to celebrate the completion of one of the greatest engineering feats of the Gilded Age—the Brooklyn Bridge.

What is a High Reliability Organization? The work is highly technical and complex, operators require a high level of technical training and certification, and the consequences of error can be catastrophic. Hence, “it has to be done right every time.”

Our safety programs, if they exist at all, tend to focus on participation and completion, rather than transformation. To be fair, the chief obstacle stems from a preponderance of wrong assumptions and dangerous misconceptions. Identifying some of these (see below) may help us as safety professionals become more effective in our mission.

“What are you going to do for an 18- to 23-year-old who yesterday worked at Wendy’s and today will be walking into a high-risk work environment?” asked Mike Deetsch. Mike is the director of education and engagement for the Toledo Museum of Art.