Workplace safety training is essential in the workplace. The company’s employees need constant information to stay ahead of hazards that can cause harm or damage in the workplace. The truth is that some workplaces are reluctant to invest in workplace safety training for their employees for various reasons, often due to resource constraints. It is entirely beneficial for your workers to have the right kind of tools to excel at their work, which training provides them. Employees are the most significant assets a company has, and without them, not much work can be done in that workplace. Without a comprehensive safety training program in place, employees may fall ill or experience an accident, resulting in reduced productivity and morale, as well as increased insurance costs for the company.
What is workplace safety training?
Workplace safety training is a process that aims to equip employees with the necessary information, knowledge, and skills to perform their work safely and effectively. An effective workplace safety training program can include instructions, guidelines for identifying hazards in the workplace, and procedures for dealing with incidents. Under the law, the employer has the responsibility to ensure that workers are working safely by providing them with instructions on how to do so, even before they start work. Workplace safety training is an integral part of the onboarding program for every new employee, and some organizations also offer refresher courses at regular intervals.
Types of safety training for employees.
There are different types of safety training for employees, which can be categorized as follows.
1.General safety training.
General safety training encompasses various types of training, including induction, training, general health and safety training, toolbox talks, on-the-job training, classroom training, and e-learning.
2. Emergency response training.
Under this type of training, we have fire safety, first aid, emergency procedures,
3. Hazard Specific training.
Hazard-specific training encompasses a range of topics, including ergonomics, personal protective equipment, electrical safety, confined space entry, hazard communication, fall protection, bloodborne pathogens, and machine guarding, among others.
4. Occupational health training.
The occupational health training will cover topics such as health resources and workplace violence prevention.
Workplace safety training organization
There are so many companies involved in workplace safety training, and they are everywhere in the world; some of them conduct online and offline training programs, depending on your choice. The companies that are into health and safety training include
- Alpha Partners training in Nigeria
- Safeguard resources Nigeria
- Novelle center Nigeria
- Hse train
- Hybrid-HSE
Importance of workplace safety training.
Workplace health and safety training offers numerous benefits to every company and its employees. Some of the benefits of having the training are listed below.
1. It supports incident and accident prevention
2. It assists in protecting a company or an organization from lawsuits
3. Through the training, knowledge is improved, leading to fewer accidents and thereby lowering insurance premiums
4. less productivity loss
5. Safety training leads to Higher employee satisfaction.
6. Workplace safety training helps reduce the incidence of workplace injuries.
Steps to an effective workplace safety training program.
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Before you can have an effective workplace safety program, there are lot of factors you need to put in place. Those factors will help you achieve workplace safety training success for your workers.
1. Business needs.
All businesses are unique, and they have distinct needs because of their differences. Identifying the needs of your business will be one step in determining where your area of focus should be in the topic you are going to cover in the training program. The needs must be considered in light of various past incidents and accident histories, as well as the industry’s potential hazards and your training objectives. From this, you will be able to determine which of the needs can be better addressed by conducting workplace safety training for the workers.
2. Employee participation.
Employees should be involved in the development, implementation, and optimization of your training program. Workers must be engaged so that they will own the training, make it their own, and show outstanding commitment towards it. Employees have the best understanding of the work, and they, too, know where they feel they need training for improvement. The dangers that might be hidden in those areas can be easily seen by them.
3. Conduct training according to roles.
There are different roles within an organization, and therefore, the training must be tailored to suit all these roles. The employees working in the kitchen should consider undergoing training on the safe use of knives, and then the drivers should focus on driving safety training.
4. Involve managers and supervisors.
Managers and supervisors must be involved in the training programs and arrangements. They lead various teams and listen to their members. This will also help to add credibility to the training. The manager and supervisors’ training can also conducted to inform them about the various safety issues in their departments and the need for them to stay on top of these issues.
5. Create a space for feedback after the training.
Ensure that you allow for feedback after each training session. Training sessions to enable workers to report back on what they observed. Through this, you can determine whether the training was practical or not.
6. Evaluation.
Every workplace training must be evaluated with tests and assignments after the coursework. This can also help determine the effectiveness of your workplace program before an accident forces you to discover its shortcomings.
7. Make workplace safety training a continuous program.
The workplace training program must be continuous and accessible to workers, allowing them to access all training content independently, even after the initial training. This will help refresh their memory at any time and keep them on course while working.
Conclusion.
Workplace safety training is crucial for the overall safety management in an organization. Organizations that pay greater attention to promoting workplace safety training among their employees always enjoy the benefits associated with it. For organizations that have yet to engage their workers in safety training, the time is now. Remember that a trained worker is a safe worker.
Onyeka Emma is a QHSE Professional with more than 10 years of experience in occupational health and safety, which spans many industries such as construction, beverage, oil and gas, etc. He has many health and safety certifications, including NEBOSH IGC, ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, and ISO 45001:2018 Lead auditor certificate. A member of IOSH, ISPON, and Nigeria Red Cross Society. He is interested in business, entrepreneurship, Speaking, and motivating people to do better for themselves. He enjoys leisure with a good motivational book.
