Are those red-yellow-green boxes on your safety documents actually helping workers or just creating colorful paperwork?

Dr. Logan F. Martin and James Junkin examine one of safety's most common tools: the risk matrix.

This episode explores whether these assessment tools belong in field documents or should stay in planning phases, where they might add real value.

The hosts tackle uncomfortable questions about when and where risk assessment should happen, while defending frontline workers when safety systems fail them.

Inside the episode:

• Trinity County confined space tragedy and H2S safety lessons
• Where risk matrices actually belong (hint: probably not on JHAs)
• Why "it's too late to draw it up in the dirt" once you're in the field
• Defending workers vs blaming them for system failures
• Planning vs field execution in safety management

James gets protective of frontline workers: "We're really good at pointing out the failures of the workers without looking at the failures of the system itself."

Dr. Martin is direct about field-level risk matrices: putting red and yellow ratings on field documents "is not helpful at all."

Both hosts challenge conventional thinking about where risk assessment belongs and whether we're setting workers up for success or failure.

The Risk Matrix Podcast is powered by Veriforce. Learn more at ⁠veriforce.com⁠

Have thoughts on this episode? Follow us on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ and join the conversation.

And don't forget to subscribe for more conversations on safety leadership, risk management, and real-world lessons from the field.