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Perhaps the biggest hazard in the workplace is complacency. As time goes on, your workers may often fall into the pattern of complacent safety behavior due to factors such as repetitive tasks, amount of experience, and familiarity with tasks. This is where the practice of updating safety training comes in. Not only is safety training crucial, but it is something you must revise and update for continual improvement. Improving the health safety and well being of your workers should be the primary objective of your efforts at updating your safety training procedures.
Why Is It Important?
The most accurate statement about workplace safety is that it is a never ending job. Safety is paramount for any contractor, and it is essential that you stay up-to-date with the latest safety regulations and practices. By regularly updating your contractor safety training, you can ensure that you and your team are always equipped with the knowledge and skills necessary to complete jobs safely and efficiently. Additionally, staying on top of the latest safety standards helps to protect your business and its reputation. By demonstrating a commitment to safety, you can increase contractor confidence to retain top talent for your workforce and gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. Finally, updating your safety training can help to minimize the risk of workplace accidents that may arise along the way, which can lead to costly legal claims and other issues that take from your time, money, and resources. Clearly, the benefits of regularly upkeeping your contractor safety training are numerous, so it is important to make sure that you are consistently taking the time to update and refresh your safety knowledge.
Employer’s Duties:
The process of updating your safety plans rely solely on the hiring organization. After all, they are the ones that are expected to pave the way in creating a sustainable safety culture. An employer's responsibility when updating a safety training plan is to ensure that all employees and contractors are trained on the most up-to-date safety protocols and procedures that relate to their industry, job specific tasks, and legal obligations. This includes making sure that all workers are aware of any new safety regulations or laws, as well as any changes in the workplace that might affect how safety protocol is carried out. Employers should also make sure that their safety training plan is tailored to their specific work environment, taking into account any specific hazards or risks that are present, especially if said hazards did not exist prior. Employers should also make sure that their safety training plan is comprehensive and covers all the necessary topics, such as first aid, fire safety, and electrical safety, to name a few. Finally, employers should make sure that any new safety training plan is regularly reviewed and updated so that employees remain up-to-date on the latest safety protocols and procedures. A good way to go about this is by consulting with your internal safety professionals to determine a review schedule that puts an emphasis on compliance progress over time.
Contractors:
If you are a contractor, it is important to stay up to date on safety training for any job that you do. Doing so will help ensure your workers are safe and productive while on the job while avoiding any potential injury to your workforce. Here are a few tips on how to update your contractor safety training:
1. Make sure you are familiar with any new safety regulations and laws. Keep up with any changes made to existing safety standards and make sure your workers are aware of them as well. Perhaps one of the main components of doing so is by keeping a close watch on OSHA’s latest updates. When it comes to legal standards, governing bodies will often afford organizations a timeframe in which they are expected to implement the new changes, so it is important to ensure that you’re ahead of the curve to avoid any disruptions down the line.
2. Schedule regular safety training sessions for your workers. This could be done on a quarterly or semi-annual basis, or perhaps even more often, depending on the nature of the work. These training sessions serve as both a physical and psychological tool. Mentally, it helps remind workers that safety is a pertinent key to their success and must be treated as such. Physically, it is a way to provide workers with all the information and resources they need to complete their work and make it back home unharmed.
3. Take advantage of online resources and tools to supplement your traditional safety training. There are many online courses and tutorials that can help you stay on top of the latest safety standards. By diversifying your safety training, you’re ensuring that all your workers are able to successfully complete what you’re asking them to do and extract value from it. Delegating some of your safety training to external resources may help bring in an external perspective and in doing so, bring something new to the table that your internal team hasn’t implemented yet. Furthermore, trusted online resources are always kept up to date and are in line with the latest safety practices.
4. Make sure your workers are properly equipped with safety gear and equipment that is suited for the job at hand. Not all PPE is built to last, some become unusable after wear and tear over time, some are disposable, and some break. Updating your personal protective equipment is just another factor that comes with updating your safety training as a whole. Therefore it is important to ensure that your equipment is not only usable, but also measures up to the standards of comfort and safety that your workers expect and deserve. Addressing those pain points ahead of time ensures that your workforce is set up for success and does not have to work with any constraints.
By following these tips, you can ensure that your contractor safety training is up to date and your workers are as safe as possible on the job. Are you ready to take control of your safety initiatives and build a safer work environment? Contractor Compliance provides a contractor management software that can help make your job much easier so that you can focus on creating the most comprehensive safety training program possible. Chat with a compliance expert today to learn more about how we can launch your organization into sustained compliance success.
