I didn't say anything to these guys about their lack of safety gear; I kept it their business. OTOH, today, the dad related to me he doesn't get around as good as he wished because he got hurt real bad felling a tree several years ago. It was one of those deals where a giant limb struck another limb and it shot right at him and hit him in his leg. Said he's lucky he can walk, it took months of recovery after multiple, including botched, surgeries. I did say, "Wow, I guess the good news is you're alive, it could've killed you." He said, "Yep, I am, if it hit me in the head or chest, I'd be dead."
I wear the safety gear because I go out into the forest all alone sometimes to cut. I tell my wife where I am going and I have a belt that could be used as a tourniquet. I lost my mom when I was very young. I wear the safety gear not for me necessarily, but for my kids and my wife. I dread the thought of my kids not having a daddy anymore over something that could have been so easily avoided. I do it for them. And I really don’t give a $@& what anybody else thinks or says. To me it is immaterial. I care what strangers think as much as I care what a rock thinks about it. My family is everything to me. They are what matters. They need me. So I do what I can to minimize risk.
Right On! My sister is dead because she wouldn't wear a seatbelt. I miss her all the time. She could be here with us enjoying the holidays; her children could be visiting her and enjoying being with their Mum. But no, she refused to wear a simple piece of safety equipment. She is dead, so she doesn't know anything but her family is here and missing her and hurting by not having her in their life any more. It is bad enough when you lose someone due to things out of their control but due to something as simple as wearing a seatbelt?
From my experience, you can't make people "do" anything. The problem is that an accident, or any bad decision really, can make them wish they had. Ultimately, it's a personal decision, a level of risk that is acceptable to me, isn't acceptable to the next person. If folks are made aware of a hazard, the ways to mitigate that hazard the consequences of taking short cuts, complacency or not wearing PPE (personal protective equipment), it's not just on them, it's on everyone around them. Their families, friends and colleagues. Trust me, if you think the actions or inactions you take when no one is looking only affects you, you are only kidding yourself. If, after knowing the true hazard, the ways to prevent it and the real life consequences, you CHOOSE to act in an unsafe way and you get caught by the process, the chemical or the equipment...that decision is all on you. You pay the price, not only that,your family pays the price, your friends pay the price and yes, your coworkers pay the price.
