TOTAL WORKER HEALTH® TOOLKIT
Safety & Health Improvement Program (SHIP)
IMPROVING EMPLOYEE SAFETY,
HEALTH AND WELL-BEING
THROUGH SUPERVISOR SUPPORT AND TEAM EFFECTIVENESS
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The SHIP toolkit provides training for supervisors and managers,
as well as their employees be on the path to improving areas within
their work teams and throughout their organization. SHIP has
been shown in research studies to:
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Reduce stress and work-life conflict
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Increase team communication and effectiveness
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Improve employee health and safety
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Enhancements in work processes and practices​
Download our SHIP One Pager and SHIP Briefing Slides to share with your organization's leader.
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Learn more about YourWorkpath Program. Organizations can participate in this program to get access to our toolkits and receive additional incentives and support from our Oregon Healthy Workforce Center.
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*Our toolkits are continually going through improvements and changes to provide your organization with updated and relevant content. SHIP was last reviewed and updated in August 2020.
“Employees were cautious at first, but now they are the ones asking supervisors if they can revisit the team effectiveness goals. They’re really enthusiastic.”
-Suzanne Kahn, Maintenance Director Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT)
Why Adopt SHIP?
National statistics report, more than
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40% of workers report that their job was very or extremely stressful
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25% view their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives
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Job stress was a greater concern to worker health than either financial or family problems
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According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics over 3 million nonfatal workplace injuries/illnesses occur annually, which cost employers $1 billion per week in workers' compensation, plus other associated costs such as:
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Medical expenses
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Legal services
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Training replacement employees
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Accident investigation
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Lost productivity
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Implementation of corrective measures
We developed SHIP to address these major organizational concerns and improve employee outcomes. Find out more about how we developed SHIP.
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The SHIP toolkit was developed by Dr. Leslie Hammer PhD. Learn more about Leslie and her research at OHSU.
The Science Behind SHIP
Where did SHIP come from? Did you know that it came from a rigorously tested study? Learn the scientific story behind SHIP.
SHIP was designed to increase supervisor and peer support and decrease job strain, which plays a key role in safety compliance and improved physical and mental health. SHIP integrates a focus on both health protection and health promotion by addressing psychosocial factors that are shown to be related to safety, well-being, and organizational productivity.
The SHIP intervention study was a NIOSH-funded randomized controlled trial focusing on supervisors and their teams. SHIP aimed to increase employee support from supervisors, improve team communication, enhance team effectiveness, and reduce stress and work-family conflict.
The SHIP intervention was composed of:
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One-hour training for supervisors
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Behavior-tracking that reinforced the training principles
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Team-based planning and problem-solving that utilizes a modified version of WFD Consulting's Team Effectiveness Process
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Follow-up sessions
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The SHIP intervention was tested in the construction industry with a sample of 528 employees. We found that the intervention was effective at reducing worker blood pressure.
The SHIP study found that the strongest effects were among work crews that needed it most; those with poorer relationships with their supervisor and those with lower team cohesion. This Total Worker Health intervention targeted the supervisor and their teams/work groups to examine effects on work-life balance. Read more in the Journal of Work & Stress.
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Also, an adapted version of the SHIP toolkit was developed for the United States Forest Service called the STTEP (Supervisor Training and Team Education Program) that included the online portion of the SHP training. Results showed similar significant outcomes on employee well-being, and descriptively explored the impact of the training on supervisors and employees.
Funding for SHIP was provided by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH; grant: U19OH010154).
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Download the latest SHIP intervention study publication.
For additional leadership training, visit our Center for Supportive Leadership website.
Scientific Publications
Perry, M. L., El-Askari, L. M., Hammer, L. B., & Brown, N. D. (2020). Securing your Own Mask before Assisting Others: Effects of a Supervisor Training Intervention on Supervisors and Employees. Occupational Health Science, 1-27.
Hammer, L. B., Truxillo, D. M., Bodner, T., Pytlovany, A. C., & Richman, A. (2019). Exploration of the impact of organisational context on a workplace safety and health intervention. Work & Stress, 33(2), 192-210.
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Brossoit, R. M., Crain, T. L., Leslie, J. J., Hammer, L. B., Truxillo, D. M., & Bodner, T. E. (2019). The effects of sleep on workplace cognitive failure and safety. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 24(4), 411-422.
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Yaldiz, L. M., Truxillo, D. M., Bodner, T., & Hammer, L. B. (2018). Do resources matter for employee stress? It depends on how old you are. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 107, 182-194.
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Zaniboni, S., Truxillo, D. M., Rineer, J. R., Bodner, T. E., Hammer, L. B., & Krainer, M. (2016). Relating age, decision authority, job satisfaction, and mental health: a study of construction workers. Work, Aging and Retirement, 2(4), 428-435.
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Hammer, L. B., Truxillo, D. M., Bodner, T., Rineer, J., Pytlovany, A. C., & Richman, A. (2015). Effects of a workplace intervention targeting psychosocial risk factors on safety and health outcomes. BioMed Research International, 2015.
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Bodner, T., Kraner, M., Bradford, B., Hammer, L., & Truxillo, D. (2014). Safety, health, and well-being of municipal utility and construction workers. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 56(7), 771-778.
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Scientific publications for family support dimension of toolkit
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Crain, T. L., Hammer, L. B., Bodner, T., Kossek, E. E., Moen, P., Lilienthal, R., & Buxton, O. M. (2014). Work–family conflict, family-supportive supervisor behaviors (FSSB), and sleep outcomes. Journal of occupational health psychology, 19(2), 155.
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Hammer, L. B., Ernst Kossek, E., Bodner, T., & Crain, T. (2013). Measurement development and validation of the Family Supportive Supervisor Behavior Short-Form (FSSB-SF). Journal of occupational health psychology, 18(3), 285.
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Hammer, L. B., Kossek, E. E., Anger, W. K., Bodner, T., & Zimmerman, K. L. (2011). Clarifying work–family intervention processes: The roles of work–family conflict and family-supportive supervisor behaviors. Journal of Applied Psychology, 96(1), 134.
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