5 Crucial Safety Topics To Include In Employee Training Program

Employee safety training is crucial when it comes to any business and it is fundamental in terms of protecting the health of the environment and employees. This type of training must be personalized, so take into consideration your target group of employees who will participate in it. Otherwise, you might be losing your time since giving training on things that your employees might find useless can result in futility. The safety training should be accomplished by not only workers but also the management since it is a good way of giving an example to others and also it is good for their own safety and opportunity to learn how to better monitor their employees in some dangerous situations. Needless to say, the training shouldn’t be about learning hundreds of pages by heart, it should be interactive, practical, and most interesting and useful. Let’s mention 5 of these safety measures that are the most common and important ones.

1. Fire safety

Every employee safety training must include fire safety procedures. This mostly implies the usage of fire extinguishers and the protocol when the building is on fire. Not only does this training prepares you for these kinds of situations, and gives you information on prevention, but also it gives you information on how to proceed when the fire has already started or after it has been extinguished.

How fire service operations will be applied, depends on different building features and one must know that to prevent hazardous situations or to act in a correct way in case they emerge anyway. Other than this, it explains the sprinkler systems, standpipe systems, fire department connections, fire alarm and communications systems, and different fire fighting systems. The evacuation is thoroughly explained as well as the emergency action plan.

2. Workplace injuries

Every place where you can set your foot is a potential place to slip or fall. Since we all commute, move to different locations, and interact with others, we can’t avoid the risk of injuries at work either. However, we can learn how to prevent it or mitigate it. The aforementioned injuries like slipping and falling are the most common ones since they happen spontaneously and without people expecting them.

You can ensure the workplace by making it free of loose boards, uneven floors, extension cords or other cables, leaks and spills, holes, trash, boxes or containers, loose mats or rugs, miscellaneous equipment, poor lighting in the area, and other similar things. In case you have to wait for the maintenance of the hazardous place, there have to be cautionary floor stands or signs, barricade tape, warning posts, and/or chains to prevent people from passing through that place and getting injured.

3. Covid-19 prevention measures

The pandemic has been a game-changer for many companies and their employees since remote work has become more popular. However, for those that cannot work from their home, everything has remained the same. It is important to find professionals who can do work safety training in times of the pandemic.

Other than regular training done until now, your employees must learn how to maintain the distance, watch their hygiene and learn how to recognize any symptoms of Covid19. If the job requires contact with many people, your employees should be provided with masks and gloves or any other equipment found necessary. Other health issues shouldn’t be neglected either, so resources for mental and physical health are always advisable.

4. Violence prevention

According to the OSHA manual for violence prevention, the main components of the prevention of violence should be:

• Demonstrating a genuine concern for the employee’s emotional and physical state and prove it by issuing a written program.
• The analysis of the site, finding some possible hazards for worksite violence
• Prevention and control implying work practices to prevent and control the already identified hazards
• Making your staff aware of the possible hazards and how to proceed in case they happen
• Recordkeeping and evaluation of the program

5. Hazardous materials

Some jobs include dealing with hazardous materials daily. There must be a written protocol for their storage and disposal. All the employees must follow that written plan after receiving the training that makes them fully understand the possible hazards and dealing with them, especially if they have to deal with hazardous chemicals. When it comes to transport, only authorized industrial trucks designed for that matter can enter hazardous locations.  When it comes to some other things that can pass unnoticed, hazardous materials exist in our offices as well, like copier suppliers or materials for cleaning the machinery.  The training should make your employees aware of everything.

A proper workplace safety training program for employee security is an ethical and legal obligation for all companies to prevent possible accidents and take care of their employees’ health and welfare. We only presented five main security problems that might emerge, but there are many more. Make sure you collaborate with good professionals on this issue so you won’t have to worry about the knowledge, safety, and overall satisfaction at work of your employees.

Willy Beamen

I’m Willy Beamen, contributor for Bizzmarkblog with 15 years of experience from Sydney, Australia. My work is mostly focused on helping small business owners and local startups to get off the ground and expand.