What happened
A psychological health and safety (PHS) program should do more than identify psychosocial risks, according to an article, as reported by Talent Canada. Risk assessments and hazard prevention are the foundation, the author says, but the real goal is to shape behaviours that protect mental health and build psychological safety.
The piece separates culture from climate. Culture is the organization's structural commitment: policies, leadership priorities and governance. Climate is what employees actually experience, including whether they can speak up, ask for help and take interpersonal risks without fear. The link between the two is behaviour.
The author proposes tracking key performance behaviours (KPBs) as lead indicators, rather than waiting on lag indicators such as injury rates or turnover. Examples include employees raising concerns, leaders listening actively, mistakes treated as learning, timely recognition, regular one-on-ones and civility in meetings. Each can be observed and measured through pulse checks, participation rates or completion rates. The suggested start is a top 10 list built with employee input, then published and measured.
Why it matters if you are hiring
Policies on paper do not keep people. The daily behaviour of supervisors and team leads does. If you hire managers, plant supervisors, team leads or finance and operations leaders, the behaviours in this list are now part of the job, and they can be screened for.
That changes how you write a role and interview for it. Ask candidates how they run one-on-ones, how they respond when someone reports a mistake, and how they handle incivility on their team. Ask for specific examples, not opinions.
It also matters for retention. The article ties these behaviours to attendance, disability and turnover. In Canada, where employers already carry duties around workplace health and safety, a clear list of expected behaviours gives hiring managers something concrete to onboard, coach and review against. The article does not offer outcome data, so treat the approach as a framework to test, not a proven result.
One thing to do this week
Pick three behaviours from the list that fit your workplace, such as regular one-on-ones, blame-free reviews of mistakes and recognition within 48 hours. Add them to the scorecard you use when interviewing for your next supervisory or management hire, with one question per behaviour.
Ask your current team leads which of the three they find hardest to do consistently. That answer tells you where to start.
Traverse Staffing places operations, manufacturing, finance and other professionals across Canada and the US, and we help employers find supervisors and managers who can lead people well as well as hit their numbers.