Why is health and safety training important?
Over 200 people are killed each year in accidents at work and over one million people are injured. Over two million suffer illnesses caused by, or made worse by, their work.
Routine work can dull alertness and a relaxed attitude can replace the caution that existed when the job was new and interesting. In many jobs the same route is traveled daily over the same roads or the same tasks are repeated with little conscious thought. Without some periodic reawakening to the ever-present hazards, lethargy deepens and the odds of an accident occurring can increase.
Workers may not always recognize the importance of safety training or think of it as unnecessary because they’ve "been doing it for years." But an important benefit of periodic safety training is the reminder that a danger can exist and the no one is immune to accidents. Therefore, it is important for workers to understand the purpose of the training session, why it will be useful to them, and what can result from not following safety rules and procedures.
The safety training should be organized so that the order in which the material is presented will match the steps that should be taken on the job. Make sure every worker understands the training material; not just that they were present or a test was given. Insist on questions from trainees after a session to tell you what did or did not sink in. This will let you know what has to be reviewed again. If there is a general lack of understanding of hazards or safety rules and practices, schedule another safety meeting or plan a refresher course for a later date.
Employees should be able to immediately practice and apply new knowledge and skills. If workers don’t understand safety training information well enough to use it on the job, the training has not been effective. There should be immediate feedback if workers are doing their job safely or not. Supervisors should watch employees do their jobs and question them, to identify what they do, or don’t, know.
Most of these tips are relatively simple and inexpensive solutions, but the safety payoff can be enormous. Remember, training is only effective when workers understand, and use, what they have learned. It takes less than a second to lose the rest of your life.
Providing health & safety information and training helps you to:
· Ensure you or your employees are not injured or made ill by the work they do;
· Develop a positive health & safety culture, where safe & healthy working becomes second nature to everyone;
· Find out how you could manage health and safety better;
· Meet your legal duty to protect the health & safety of your employees.
Effective training:
· Will contribute towards making your employees competent in health & safety;
· Can help your business avoid the distress that accidents and ill health cause;
· Can help you avoid the financial costs of accidents & occupational ill health.
Do not forget that your insurance does not cover all losses. Damaged products, lost production and de-motivated staff can all result.
The law requires that you provide whatever information, instruction and training is needed to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health & safety of your employees.
What is training?
Training means helping people to learn how to do something, telling people what they should or (often as important) should not do, or simply giving them information. Training is not just about formal ‘classroom’ courses and obtaining ‘tickets’ (certificates) to work.
Company Culture
When employees join a new workplace, they should be given an immediate sense that the company places a high priority on safety. This should be ingrained into the culture as a whole. One way to do this is to have everyone, from low-wage workers to senior executives, show public support for and knowledge of safety programs. Employees should also learn about safety training through detailed policies and procedures laid out by the company.
Safety Training Includes Studying Incidents
Safety-oriented organizations learn from accidents and illnesses that affect workers' health. They study each incident, then make any necessary changes to policies and procedures to prevent similar accidents or illnesses in the future. Part of this process falls to the head safety officer. He oversees the collection of incident data and reviews it with the assistance of an interdisciplinary team. Executive leaders delegate the development of better safety training to explain revised policies and procedures to managers. These managers ensure that updated safety training programs clearly explain changes to policies and procedures to affected workers.
Safety Training Fits a Dynamic Organization
Employees need safety training whenever their job changes in a substantial way. This is especially true when an employee is exposed to increased risk, such as when she takes a new position, gets a change in duties, gets introduced to new equipment or changes in how equipment is used, and is introduced to new technology. New safety training should also be implemented when the employee works with more at-risk workers or needs to satisfy the employer's insurance provider.
Safety Training Responds to Identified Risks
Executives and safety officers must lead the way when it comes to safety procedures. They should recommend new or improved safety training to prevent workplace accidents and illnesses. They can do this by keeping lines of communication open among workers throughout the firm, including how safety data is shared between workers and management. Executives and safety officers need input from all employees to identify risks facing the organization and then use a team approach to develop methods of minimizing or preventing risks.
When workplace safety is a high company priority, and the workers are properly trained, they feel more comfortable and confident on the job. There are fewer accidents. Productivity is increased, costs are diminished, and profit margins follow suit.
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