Bill Singh is no stranger to safety at Berkeley Lab. In his 6 years here, he’s already received two Hero Cards — which are given out for demonstrating good safety behavior — and a Safety Spot Award. And now, Bill can add “raffle winner” to his list of safety-culture achievements.
A few months back, Singh, a senior recruiter in Human Resources, spotted slip hazards on a walkway near Building 90. “Leaf-blowers had blown foliage onto the hilly stairway leading from Building 90 to Building 55,” he says. This made for a slippery situation, so Bill took action and cleared the branches off the walkway so that others could walk safely. Robert Rodriguez, a fellow senior recruiter in HR, happened to see Bill’s efforts to prevent a slip-and-fall injury, and promptly handed over a Hero Card.
Senior recruiter, HR
Hero Cards are a way for Lab workers to thank one another for using safety common sense, and for looking out for fellow employees. The size of a credit card, they are passed along when one employee catches another in the act of doing the right thing. And they’re not just a thank-you for a job well done; winners receive a “Safety Is Elemental” pin and can become eligible for a quarterly raffle drawing, with a cash prize.Bill became a raffle winner when his card was recently drawn for the $50 prize. Following instructions on the card, he had registered it at the Hero Card Program website, which made him eligible for the raffle.
Bill is matter-of-fact but serious about Berkeley Lab safety: “The importance of safety is visualized daily, when you start looking for hazards and realizing the things that can cause injury or illness.” When you work at the Lab, he says, “It becomes second nature. You see floor mats flipped over, it becomes a habit to flip them back. You see branches in a walkway, it’s become a habit to move them so nobody will trip.”
And Bill believes in paying it forward. The card didn’t linger in his possession for long. When he one day was chatting with fellow employees, he stepped back, not noticing he was close to a 2-foot drop behind him. He was quickly warned about the situation by colleague Blanca Bocobo, who then became the next owner of the Hero Card. And so it goes.
Another $50 raffle winner was Helen Budworth of the Life Sciences Division. She verified that cryostat users were trained and the cryostat service technician was working with a valid SJHA.
Do you have a Hero Card that’s gathering dust? Pass it along! Carry a card with you, and when you notice a fellow Lab worker doing the right thing for safety, thank them with a Hero Card. Would you like a supply of Hero Cards to give out? Click here. More than 250 Hero Cards have been given out so far.
