In the construction industry, safety is often measured in numbers such as incident rates, lost time, and reported near misses.  However, a true safety culture runs much deeper than metrics.  It should live in everyday conversations, behaviors, and decisions.  This is how a true culture of safety is built. 

At Barr & Barr, our Safety Committee includes every level of the company—from C-suite members to field staff and everyone in between.  This ensures our safety program is more than compliance-driven; it is the heartbeat of a culture of trust, care, and continual improvement.  Over the past two years, insights from the AGC of Massachusetts’ SAFE-T Survey have provided a powerful mirror, reflecting both our strengths and opportunities to improve. 

The data show that over 90% of tradespeople clearly understand management’s commitment to safety.  Statistics like this highlight the visible and genuine commitment of our leadership and help drive the construction safety industry forward.  However, the survey also revealed key areas where the industry can grow stronger together.  This is one of the many reasons the AGC of Massachusetts created the Safety Innovation and Resources Committee, on which Barr & Barr proudly holds a seat.  As a longtime youth mentor and track-and-field coach, Barr & Barr’s Safety Director (Reginald Shubert) consistently communicates the importance of operating as a coaching team rather than a policing body to Barr & Barr’s Safety Committee (the “Safety Committee”).

Instead of focusing on enforcement, the Safety Committee encourages a mentorship mindset, where field leaders, safety professionals, and executives act as coaches who listen, guide, and empower workers to make safer choices.  At Barr & Barr, we understand that real safety conversations happen on site—during tasks, morning huddles, and toolbox talks where workers connect as peers.  Our Safety Committee has worked to shift these conversations from one-way directives to dialogue between management and workers, where feedback, questions, concerns, and contributions are not only welcomed but expected. 
This coaching approach is essential to closing the gap highlighted in the SAFE-T Survey data.  While most workers recognize safety leadership and its commitment to safety, fewer than 40% reported receiving daily instructions with a clear focus on safety.  To address this, Barr & Barr’s Safety Committee has developed new training resources and field engagement tools that emphasize coaching moments—for example, short, consistent safety checks that reinforce safe practices and create open lines of communication.  We also conduct a complete safety walk with every trade partner weekly, focusing solely on safety.  This gives each trade partner a voice in the collective safety of our projects and helps build the idea of safety not as a series of meetings but as a shared mindset. 

At Barr & Barr, we believe the foundation of a high-performing safety culture is psychological safety—the shared belief that it is safe to speak up, ask questions, and challenge the status quo without fear of embarrassment.  Our Safety Committee was built on this principle by ensuring every worker has a voice in shaping how we manage safety and expectations across our projects. 

This approach is vital to addressing one of the most alarming findings in the SAFE-T Survey: nearly one in five workers say they always or usually take risks to get the job done, and Hispanic workers are more than five times as likely to believe they will be injured in the next year.  These statistics reveal not only behaviors but also perceptions, trust, and, importantly, inclusion. The Barr & Barr Safety Committee combats these trends by prioritizing initiatives that heighten inclusion and equitable communications, ensuring all workers feel heard and supported.  Our project stand-downs and communications include bilingual safety materials, diverse leadership, and annual diversity training.  These efforts build trust across language and cultural lines. 

Equally concerning, nearly 20% of women reported having only some or no control over their safety on site.  Barr & Barr has a strong presence of women in construction, including on our leadership teams.  The women on our team are strong advocates for safe working environments and are committed to multiple professional organizations that champion women in construction and leadership, including NAWIC and PWIC.  When people believe their voice matters, they bring their best selves to work—and that is when true safety innovation begins.

The Safety Committee’s work does not stop at the boundaries of Barr & Barr.  The committee has also helped create contractual safety language to ensure our trade partners share the same commitment to safety, worker empowerment, and data-driven accountability.  These initiatives align everyone on the project around the same safety vision. 

A true safety culture changes the mindset of workers, not just policy.  Barr & Barr is a 100% employee-owned company, and our employee-owners are committed to shared ownership.  Safety is not something we just hand down from ownership; it is something built collectively by everyone who steps onto a Barr & Barr project.  Through safety committee meetings, training, and field observations, Barr & Barr employee-owners are encouraged to voice ideas, identify hazards, and propose improvements.  This approach strengthens engagement and reinforces that safety is not a management directive but a foundation that gives everyone a voice—not only in how we improve our program, but in how we advance the industry as well. 

The Barr & Barr Safety Committee’s impact goes far beyond monthly meetings and minutes.  It is reflected in every training topic, every improvement in our program, and every collective effort that builds trust among the tradesmen and tradeswomen who have the right to work in a place free of known and recognized hazards.  Every safety initiative—whether a revised orientation, a new safety campaign, or an updated policy—contains the fingerprints of the committee members who are deeply committed to one mission: keeping safety as a core value and protecting the lives of the men and women building our projects.  Their efforts reinforce the message that safety and mental well-being go hand in hand. Every improvement we make in how we communicate, coach, and care for one another strengthens not only our policies but also our reputation as a company that truly values human life. 

Our ongoing challenge is to turn insight and lessons into improvement and to transform leadership intent into field reality by modeling a coaching attitude and behaviors.  This is what we believe will sustain a culture of trust.  Through the efforts of our Safety Committee, we are not just building America—we are building safer workplaces and stronger voices within the construction industry.  At Barr & Barr, if we see something and say something, we also do something. Everyone has a voice—and everyone goes home safely.