A strong safety culture can be hindered by the “treacle layer” – where vital safety information stalls within middle management. Recognising and addressing this communication barrier is essential to maintaining trust, effective risk management, and a genuinely open safety culture.
1. Safety Culture: Understanding and Addressing the ‘Treacle’ Layer
Developing and nurturing a positive safety culture within an organisation requires commitment, investment, and visible action. We have already explored the impact leaders have on an organisation’s safety culture, but are you aware of the treacle layer that also has significant influence on culture and risk management?
2. What is the Treacle Layer?
The treacle layer refers to a level within an organisation where safety critical information unintentionally becomes stalled or diluted, hindering the development of a positive safety culture.
It typically sits within a supervisory/middle management role which manages day-to-day operational demands, deals with time-critical priorities and people management. In this environment, safety-critical information often gets unintentionally stuck, not reaching all staff or escalating effectively to senior management.
3. The result of a treacle layer
The treacle layer results in:
Safety being inadvertently deprioritised: there may be a perception that safety is a hindrance to completing day-to-day activities.
Information bottleneck: safety concerns reported by frontline staff get trapped, leading to a perception that “nothing will get done”. This discourages future reporting and weakens engagement.
Erosion of trust: when safety information disappears into the “abyss,” it shatters trust between employees and management, undermining the foundations of a healthy safety culture.
Ineffective risk management: without accurate and timely safety information flowing through the organisation, risks are not adequately identified, assessed, or mitigated, leading to ineffective risk management.
Poor safety behaviours: if employees do not believe that safety is a priority, or safety concerns are not being addressed, they will be less inclined to report when procedures are incorrect or not fit for purpose or may short cut processes or find workarounds. This leads to staff deviating from established processes (practical drift).
4. Signs of a treacle layer
Low Safety Reporting Rates: a significant indicator is a low volume of incident, near-miss, or hazard reports from frontline staff.
Perception of Blame Culture: employees express fear of being blamed for reporting safety concerns, rather than viewing reporting as a learning opportunity.
Lack of Feedback on Reported Issues: safety concerns are reported, but employees rarely hear back about what actions were taken or why.
“Us vs. Them” Mentality: a disconnect exists between frontline staff and leadership, where employees believe they do not take safety seriously.
Resistance to New Safety Initiatives: scepticism or resistance to the implementation of new safety procedures, training, or equipment.
Discrepancy in Safety Perceptions: senior leadership believes safety is a high priority and well-managed, while frontline staff feel unheard or unsafe.
High Incidence of “Workarounds”: informal “workarounds” to official safety procedures are often observed, indicating that procedures are perceived as impractical or that management is not enforcing them effectively.
4. Strategies to Mitigate Against this Treacle Layer:
- Leadership commitment and visible support
- Empowering and equipping managers for their role
- Fostering a just and open culture
- Timely communication, feedback and engagement
- Transparency in the sharing of safety performance data
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Ebeni stands ready to support you in your journey towards proactive safety management and a positive and engaged safety culture.