This material is for training purposes only to inform the reader of occupational safety and health best practices and general compliance requirements and is not a substitute for provisions of the OSH Act of 1970 or any governmental regulatory agency.
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs Maslow identified five levels of human needs that motivate behavior. As each lower-level need is satisfied, the next higher need becomes more important to a person. Reference the graphic below. The most basic needs are called physiological or survival needs. They include air, water, food, clothing. Once a person is satisfied these needs, he or she will focus on safety, security and shelter. Once the person feels safe and secure, the focus changes once again to the next higher level of needs. The person will seek out relationships that provide affection, caring, and belonging. When these needs are met, the person will become interested in obtaining respect, status and recognition from others. With these higher-level needs all satisfactorily fulfilled, the person has the opportunity to work to become "self-actualized": to be all they can be...achieve their ultimate potential.
When we apply Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs to the workplace I think we can agree that basic survival needs have been met. The most basic level of needs we find in the workplace might be thought of as the safety and security needs. This is very important to understand because if management does not provide resources (physical and psychosocial) to fulfill these needs, a culture of fear will likely exist. And, employees will be working to avoid negative consequences rather than working to obtain positive consequences. "Consequently" long-term productivity suffers.
In such a production-only culture, a natural conflict exists between working fast and working safe. If the employee doesn't work fast enough, job security is in jeopardy. In such instances, working fast will win the conflict. In a safe-production culture, working safe is the primary criteria for job security. The employee's job security is assured by working safe which is considered professional behavior. Copyright © 2000-2008 Geigle Communications LLC . All rights reserved. Federal copyright law prohibits unauthorized reproduction by any means and imposes fines up to $25,000 for violations. disclaimer | Comment