Despite the availability of prevention technology, drunk driving crashes still account for 30% of U.S. traffic deaths. Mothers Against Drunk Driving® pushed to equip all new cars with life-saving technologies.
MADD created a “War Room” made up of former MADD presidents, drunk driving survivors and family members, and staff to advocate for the passage of prevention technology legislation. “War Room” members met with Congress members, testified in hearings and shared their stories in the media. In 2021, a requirement for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to develop a safety standard for drunk driving prevention technology in all new cars passed as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The “War Room” will continue to push NHTSA to issue the new standard by the 2024 deadline, enabling cars equipped with the NHTSA-directed technology to roll off the assembly line in 2026-27.
Nutrien
From hazardous materials, mobile equipment and seasonal extended hours, fertilizer company Nutrien deals with a lot of potentially fatal hazards. The company typically relied on third-party vendors for its safety training in Canada. The training was generic, and didn’t account for differences between provinces, regions and countries.
To address these issues and better engage employees, Nutrien built a new, company-owned training center in Canada. The center uses the latest technologies, region-specific messaging, hands-on activities and an immersive learning environment to train for high-risk, life-critical operating tasks. So far 120 participants, including operators, managers, and safety, health and professionals from across Canada, have taken courses at the center, and 84% of them have rated the courses as excellent. In addition to its own training, several organizations in Canada have expressed interest in partnering with Nutrien or hosting their own training at the facility.
Paul Cheak
In Singapore, a mandatory conscription policy called National Service requires all male citizens and permanent residents to serve in the Singapore Armed Forces. Because of this, safety in the military is an important public concern.
Paul Cheak conducted a study to examine safety in the Singapore Armed Forces based on publicly reported incidents between 1965 and 2020. Cheak studied news reports and parliamentary proceedings to identify accidents, near misses, parliamentary safety statements and public announcements on armed forces safety initiatives. The study has played an important role in safety. Not only did it fill a research gap, it also points to areas for further research, such as the need to align safety and the warrior ethos. The findings have shaped safety education efforts for senior officers and other units in the Singapore military, and could apply to other international militaries.
