Principles for Working Safely

Since 2011, we have been following the Golden Rules of Safety at Gasunie; these rules make sure that everyone knows what is meant by acting safely. In 2021, we introduced our Principles for Working Safely as a more accurate reflection of today's reality. These Principles tie in well with the Code of Conduct 'Working Together', which concentrates particularly on working safely and personal responsibility. The Principles do not focus on rules and procedures themselves but on how to interact with each other when it comes to rules, hazards, risks and unexpected events.

The arrival of the Principles for Working Safely does not mean the disappearance of the Golden Rules of Safety. The rules will continue to exist and will be referred to in manuals,  introduction films and induction films. All the rules are important. The Principles are more about taking personal responsibility, being resilient and risk aware, which goes much further than simply following rules.

The Principles cover so much more than just following the rules. They

• appeal to an employee's own attitude and sense of responsibility,
• focus on working safely/at work,
• encourage learning from incidents and increase safety awareness,
• require constructive recommendations for improvements to procedures, instructions, working methods,
• make conversations more accessible, with each other and with contractors,
• require other skills, such as intervention and conversational skills.