Issue link: http://www.insightdigital.biz/i/1497566
10 | forwardHR • Sp r i n g 202 3 SAFETY & COMPLIANCE M itch had been on the job a few months when he noticed a team member doing something that Mitch remembered as being a safety concern from a recent training session. Mitch thought about speaking up but was afraid. What if this long-time employee resented the interference of a relative newcomer? What if the rest of the team made light of it? What if Mitch was mistaken? When that same colleague was injured later because of the unsafe behavior, Mitch regretted staying silent. Why didn't Mitch say anything? Mitch's reluctance to speak up could mean that he did not feel psychologically safe in the workplace. What is psychological safety? Psychological safety is the belief that one will not be punished, judged or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes. For the individual, psychologically safe environments can improve mental health by easing the stress of having to prove oneself when speaking. A person who feels psychologically safe at work might be willing to speak up even if they are, for example, a recent hire, the only LGBTQ member of a team, a woman in a male-dominated department or generally an introvert. e benefits of psychological safety in the workplace include: • Improved team effectiveness • Increased employee retention • Greater inclusion and empathy • More creativity and innovation • Greater employee well-being • Improved organization perfor- mance overall, including increased revenue and customer satisfaction Without psychological safety, innovative ideas may be lost Another example of an employee not feeling psychologically safe is the worker who tends to be silent in meetings, but later approaches team leaders privately with feedback or ideas. In the abstract of her book, "e Fearless Organization: Creating Psychological Safety in the Workplace for Learning, Innovation, and Growth," Amy Edmondson, professor of leadership and management at Harvard Business School, wrote: Encouraging innovation Psychological safety in the workplace is critical to team success By Judy Kneiszel, Editor, J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.