Editor's Note: The 2024 class of America's Safety Companies will be recognized Tuesday, August 27 during the Safety Leadership Conference. More information about the conference, including registration, can be found at www.safetyleadershipconference.com.
The Clorox Company
Consumer packaged goods
Oakland, CA
5,724 employees | 33 sites | 27 EHS professionals
Five years ago, The Clorox Company, best known for its bleach and cleaning products as well as other consumer products, launched what it called its IGNITE strategy—a set of goals emphasizing the company’s strong commitments to environmental, social and governance (ESG). Since then, Clorox has won national recognition for its various sustainability and environmental programs, including the 2023 Safer Choice Partner of the Year Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
When it came to workplace safety, though, Clorox found that some of the protocols it had put into place during the COVID-19 pandemic were still being sustained even after the pandemic had ended. While the processes put into place during the pandemic had been successful in protecting the workforce, by late 2022 those same protocols were resulting in an overall decline in group engagement activities, explains Carla Mueller, Clorox’s associate director, global safety and environmental.
To re-engage the organization in behaviors needed to sustain a strong safety culture and engagement, they created a company-wide contest—The Clorox Cup. This enterprise-wide competition was designed to celebrate and spotlight activities that promoted a work environment consistent with corporate safety values.
The tasks involved in the competition were daily, routine functions that are expected from all locations, adds Michael Rouse, supply chain associate with Clorox, such as conducting toolbox talks, security penetration tests, safety stand-downs, forklift inspections, and tier meetings. “The desired goal of this process is to encourage daily inspections, tasks and meetings to promote and enhance the safety culture at Clorox.”
Part of the company’s IGNITE strategy includes IDEA (Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Allyship), a program that is integrated into Clorox’s corporate IGNITE strategy. “IDEA helps our employees be the best versions of themselves, professionally and personally,” Rouse says. “Our IDEA efforts are focused on three areas: building thriving teams, fostering inclusion and allyship, and winning with multicultural consumers. Through these focus areas we create more inclusive brands, drive a culture of inclusion through our employee resource groups (ERGs) and mentorship programs, build thriving and diverse teams, and conduct ongoing learning and education opportunities.” The EHS team, he points out, is involved in these efforts by promoting the IDEA program and ERGs at the manufacturing plants.
Besides the Clorox Cup, which the company considers a huge success, workers are encouraged to participate in the safety process in other ways, such as including employees in inspection committees. “By actively participating in these committees, employees are able to identify safety hazards and potential risks preventing accidents to themselves and co-workers,” Rouse says. “The inspection committees also ensure that we are in compliance with industry standards, regulations and internal policies.” Having employees involved in committees and other engagement activities provides a way for all personnel at the company’s manufacturing plants to work together to promote workplace safety.
