Funny safety moment ideas sound somewhat contradictory. Safety tends to be a serious subject. It’s hard to find humor in a sliced finger or a workplace accident concussion. Or course, everyone should take safety policies and procedures seriously. But adding humor to the topic of safety at work can actually be beneficial to workers and safety managers.

According to research conducted by institutions like Stanford, MIT, London Business School, and Harvard, laughter relieves boredom and stress, activates creativity and collaboration, boosts well-being, and increases productivity. Humor can be a positive in the workplace as long as it’s in good taste and not counterproductive or condescending.

Think about it. Safety managers are consistently stressing the importance of safety in the workplace. Workers repeatedly hear the same thing over, and over, and over again. Repetition may be the mother of retention, but in many cases, people unconsciously tune out. There’s nothing more dangerous in an industrial workplace than a disengaged worker. But tell an amusing story, or talk about humorous safety moments on the job, and people tend to remember that. They might even find themselves chuckling throughout the day when they think about it. Which guarantees that they’re thinking about it!

A Different Angle

Instead of the same old boring presentations, why not prepare funny safety moment topics for meetings? Research shows that the human attention span is getting shorter, so maintaining employee interest during a meeting can be challenging. Why not try a different angle? It’s important to talk about the serious side of safety like regulations, statistics, fatalities, injuries, and workplace accidents. But adding humor helps employees relate and engage, which is often more effective in getting the message across.

Here are some ideas that can help make safety meetings more effective and even enjoyable:

  • Videos – You could put up a chart of stats and talk about how many injuries occurred in the workplace. Or you could show a funny safety moment video of Ben dancing around to music while using a box cutter – then cutting his finger. The video could end with a song like the Bee Gees “You Should be Dancing.” Instead, the song would say “You Shouldn’t be Dancing While Cutting” and show Ben nursing his bruised finger with a frown on his face.
  • Safety Talks - Funny safety moments for meetings could include funny safety talks by guest speakers. They can share stories of hilarious moments that could have gone wrong and show how implementing the appropriate safety procedure avoided a serious incident.
  • Games - Play a game. People enjoy games. They break up the monotony. Use some of the popular games like Charades and tailor it to safety. Have one person break a safety rule and do it in an entertaining manner, and everyone else must guess what rule that person is breaking.
  • Slogans - Have employees come up with unique slogans or jingles around safety. Give out a prize for the most popular slogan. For example, if you want to stress the importance of safety gloves, a slogan might be:

“Where the blade lingers – protect your fingers.” Underneath is a picture of a pair of safety gloves.

Or

“Keep your brain from going flat - wear your hard hat!” Underneath is a picture of a falling beam.

Kind of corny, right? But the message is clear. How many jingles and slogans have you heard that are corny? Commercial jingles you remember, even from decades ago, prove that catchy sticks! You may walk away humming a song or jingle, repeating a slogan, or laughing—the point is, you will remember. It subconsciously triggers your brain to put on your hard hat and safety gloves. Although workers know the importance of these things, seeing numbers and stats is not as effective as a creative touch of humor.

Make Safety Something to Remember

Safety moments are a good way to get employees involved in the safety culture and keep safety at the forefront of their minds. They are short moments taken throughout the day to focus on effective practices in the workplace. Humor is just one way to do this. There are many other effective ways to incorporate a safety moment into your organization’s culture.

Safety in the workplace should not be taken lightly, but adding a funny safety moment doesn’t take away from a quality safety program. It’s more likely to capture attention and raise employee engagement in a way that other methods might not. Often a good laugh is just what people need to break up the day’s routine. There’s no harm. Have fun with funny safety moment ideas and remember—you can’t break a funny bone!

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