A Passion for Safety: Enhancing SGH’s Safety Culture
To celebrate National Safety Month, Simpson Gumpertz & Heger (SGH) Safety Manager José Lugo shared what led him to the safety profession and how he prioritizes the well-being of his teammates.
How did you get into the safety field?
José Lugo
Safety is something I’ve been really passionate about my whole life. I’ve been very fortunate, but when I was a student at Keene State College, a close relative got seriously injured on the job. I was in a safety course at the time, and when I shared my experience with my professor, he told me that there’s a whole safety profession and people who devote their careers to preventing incidents like these. My relative did not speak English, and his employer didn’t give him the proper safety training he needed. So, a light bulb went off in my head. I figured out that being bilingual in a career as a health and safety professional was a way that I could help. My career took off from there, and here I am now, almost twenty years later.
I’ve been very blessed in my profession, and I know I can make a difference. I develop safety policies, trainings, and procedures, and ultimately, my goal is to have a safe working environment for our employees. I just want to make a difference and make sure that people don’t get hurt.
How would you describe SGH’s safety culture?
You can’t be a successful company without having a really good safety foundation. Everyone should be empowered to speak up and speak out about their work environment. People feel that we care. Safety is part of our core business values, and it’s a strong foundation that has been very successful because of how the employees feel about themselves. And on top of that, it’s being able to identify opportunities for improvement. I constantly challenge myself to be better than I was yesterday. So, we have a great foundation, and we’re always looking to take our safety program to the next level.
We care because we want to make sure that people get home safe. At the end of the day, no one wants to see anybody get hurt. We’re all team members. We’re a company that really, truly cares about our team.
What’s the best part of your job?
Honestly, it’s the people. I learn so much from all the different perspectives and types of work that we do. One day, I could be working on an oil and gas or nuclear project, and the next day I’m leading a training on fall protection. It’s never a dull moment. I leave work with a smile on my face every single day.