Carson City, NV – The Hold The Pull (HTP) peer-to-peer safety group rolled out a new pitch in late January. The idea: to switch up HTP’s approach, keeping the pitch a bit lighter in the morning in the bull room, sharing lunch and connecting with members before digging into the depressing side of accidents and their ramifications later in the field. The main goal: to communicate the fact that 1245 wants nothing more than our guys to go home safe every day, and that it’s the choice of the guys in the field to make that happen.
Carson
On Tuesday, January 22, at 6am sharp, Hold the Pull (HTP) members Will Baker, Jesse Murrill and Business Rep Fred Aboud met our members at the Carson Yard. Approximately 35 members participated – most of them younger linemen and very new to Nevada. For the majority, it was their first time hearing our pitch for safety. The group was curious and receptive to our message. When we joined them at the jobsite we held a series of conversations. The connection outside the bull room was different from when we engaged members solely in the shop.
This was, by far in my opinion, the best conversation and connection we’ve had with a group at an NV Energy property. I believe bringing the guys lunch and getting out in the field serves to achieve two goals. First, I do think it’s good for management to hear our pitch. Secondly, guys feel more free to speak their mind. The guys were able to open up about some issues they are having. Their candor was made possible because of the face-to-face interaction in the field.
Reno
The next day in Reno we arrived at 6am and again followed the same format. We delivered a good pitch in the bull room to approximately 60 members, keeping it light and fairly brief. We had some stewards in the crowd and that got some good conversations going. Again, however, you could feel the conversation was slightly stunted by being in the office-type setting. This time we got to head out with two crews. First, we went and met Foreman and Safety Steward Larry Brook and his crew at a jobsite. We brought lunch and got to break bread with the crew. The guys opened up, and we got a great connection with the group. While nothing major came up (which is good), I feel like if something does in the future, they won’t hesitate to reach out.
We had a very similar interaction with Tali Kavapalu and his crew on the next meet up. We held great conversations with the guys, and there was great connection and buy in. For me I’m really hoping this can elevate our group to the next level. It feels like this is a really great progression for the group.
– Jesse Murrill, HTP Committee
