ABSTRACT
Health and safety at work are heavily influenced by change. Few things remain the same over time. In organisations, priorities and values change as do the people who put them into practice. The challenge is to maintain continuity of purpose and to seek continual improvement. Because of this, the health and safety professional is an agent of change: a facilitator, not just an expert. It follows that the skills of the professional need to include the ability to recognise the signs of change and influence it within the organisation. For successful health and safety management, input into the management process is required from a number of disciplines – engineering, human factors, industrial relations, occupational health as well as ‘safety’. Just as accidents are described as the results of multiple causes, so is change the product of many influences.
