Developing a Safety Training Program That Works for Your Company

When employees fail to perform their jobs properly, supervisors usually assume that training will bring them up to speed. Other actions (such as hazard mitigation or the implementation of engineering controls) may, however, enable employees to perform their jobs properly.

Ideally, training in safety and health should be provided before problems or accidents occur. This training would cover general protection and health rules besides work procedures, and it would be repeated in case of an accident or near-miss incident.

Training can effectively address problems caused by a lack of knowledge of a work process, strangeness with equipment, or incorrect task execution. Coaching is less effective in dealing with issues caused by an employee's lack of motivation or attention to the job. Training is most effective when it is designed for the employer's total safety and health program.

If the problem can be solved, in whole or in part, through training, the next step is to determine what training is required.

A job analysis develops when designing a new training program or preparing to instruct an employee in an unfamiliar procedure or system by examining engineering data on new equipment or safety data sheets on new substances. This step is a method of studying and documenting each part of a job, identifying existing or potential hazards, and determining the best way to perform the job to reduce risk.

The content for the training activity can be based on information obtained from a Job Hazard Analysis.

Appropriate training content can be developed using methods such as:

1. Examining company accident and injury records to determine how accidents happen and what can be done to prevent them from happening again.

2. Requesting employees to provide job descriptions in writing and in their own words. These should include the tasks completed as well as the tools, materials, and equipment utilized.

3. Observing employees at work as they perform tasks, questioning and documenting their responses.

4. Investigating similar training programs offered by other companies in the same sphere or seeking advice from such an organization.

Employees can provide valuable information about the training they require.

Once the type of training required is determined, it is equally important to decide which one is not required. Employees should be made aware of all steps involved in a task or procedure, but training should focus on the steps that require improvement. This action eliminates unnecessary pieces of training and tailors them to the needs of the employees.

Identifying hazardous occupations is one method of identifying employee populations at high levels of occupational risk (and thus in greater need of safety and health training).

Even within inherently dangerous industries, some employees face greater danger than others. In other cases, the hazardousness of occupation is influenced by the working conditions, such as noise, heat or cold, or safety or health hazards in the surrounding area. The incidence of accidents and injuries, both within the company and in the industry, is a second method of identifying high-risk employees.

If some occupational categories have more accident and injury rates than others, training may be one way to reduce those rates. Furthermore, a thorough accident investigation can identify in addition to specific employees who may benefit from training but also company-wide training requirements.