We always stress the importance of training employees to maintain and improve their safety in the workplace. In the past months we’ve featured articles on training in heat stress prevention, operating forklifts, working around agricultural chemicals, arc-welding, responding to fall emergencies, etcetera, etcetera. But even “training” is too general a term.
Do you really know the scope of the training that your employer must provide you with? How do you know if you’ve been given complete and proper training by your employer? What does OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) require from employers when it comes to training employees?
What Could Happen if You Lack Training?
Need we answer this question? With accidents happening left and right everyday in various workplaces, you very well know that training prevents injuries and fatalities from happening. Without proper training, every worker is at risk of being the next news headline for a very terrible reason.
Just this week, news circulated about a University of Pittsburgh laboratory technician whose hand got mauled by an 18-pound macaque monkey. The attack, which happened on Sept. 24, left Patricia Boyle’s hand with numerous stitches, as well as bone, tendon, and nerve damage. She said the latter was irreparable.
“I’m afraid I’ll never be able to work in this field again because of my hand,” Boyle said. “I did a lot of microsurgery (in previous jobs) and don’t know anything else but this. This is my life.”
To make matters worse, Boyle has yet to know if she is positive for hepatitis B and other infections that the macaque might have.
“I was thrown in there and not taught anything, and told to do this,” she said.
On Sept. 24, Boyle was alone in a containment area of the lab when the accident happened. Using a pole, she tested if the macaque’s water system was working. The macaque inside was able to clasp the pole and jerk it inside the cage. It then chomped down on her right palm.
Boyle said the monkey was “clamping down and munching on” her hand for “up to a minute”. It wasn’t until after she pulled her badly injured hand out of the monkey’s mouth that she was able to run and scream for help. She and a co-worker said the walkie-talkie system inside the containment area was not working, making it impossible for Boyle to request for help while the attack was happening.
After eight days of being confined in the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Boyle was discharged. She and her co-worker, who questioned the safety and training procedures at the lab, were fired on Sept. 25 for reasons that she said were “vague”.
Education vs. Training
While the case above was caused by different factors, proper training alone would have done a lot to eliminate the hazards involved.
It’s not enough for employees to be toured around the worksite and required to read handouts on safety tips on performing their job. This is merely education—just a detailed way of explaining to employees WHY safe procedures and practices are important in the workplace.
Training provides employees with the what, why, where, when—all the W’s you need to know so you can maintain and improve your own safety. Most importantly, training must teach you a lot of HOWs—how to recognize hazards, how to control any exposure (to these hazards) that may be present in the work area and how to perform your job safely.
Basically, here are the benefits of training to employees:
- Makes you aware of job hazards
- Teaches you to perform your job safely
- Instructs you to recognize hazards
- Teaches you to control any exposure
- Instructs you to respond to emergencies
- Promotes two-way communication
- Creates interest in the safety program
- Encourages safety suggestions
Complete Education and Training
If you think training only involves orienting new employees, think again. Besides providing new employee orientations, employers must implement periodic safety and health training. This means providing training to employees regularly. This is necessary whether or not changes are made in the conditions of the workplace.
All training tools must be written so that employees can go back to them whenever they feel the need to do so. This is not just a good way to remind them about their responsibilities (wearing correct PPE, following proper procedures, etc.); it also encourages them to come up with any suggestions that may improve the training material.
Part of training employees is conducting emergency drills. This is a great way to ensure that employees perform the right safety procedures even during unexpected instances.
Every employer must also see to it that all its managers and supervisors are well-educated and trained about everything that the employees need to understand and learn. Their training must sharpen their leadership skills and enhance their know-how in identifying, controlling and eliminating hazards.
How then can you tell yourself, “I’m sure I’m equipped with everything I need to learn and perform to make myself and my work area safe.”? If you can answer yes to every question below, then your employer has done an excellent job in training you and your co-workers:
- Do you know all the workplace hazards that could harm you?
- Do you know how to control or eliminate your exposure to workplace hazards?
- Do you know and understand OSHA regulations pertinent to the job you are doing?
- Do you, your supervisors, and your managers understand all your safety and health responsibilities?
- Can you say that your know-how is enough to help you accomplish these responsibilities?
Training Documentation
An employer knows better than not to keep a record of their employees’ trainings. A documentation of training keeps employers informed about the last time employees underwent training or how frequent they go through the training procedures. It also serves as an employer’s evidence that they are complying with OSHA requirements by training their employees. Such evidence comes in handy should an accident happen.
Related Links:
Top 7 Tips on Using the 2006 Census to Improve Workplace Safety
Top 10 OSHA Fines for Small Companies
Disregarding Safety Will Cost You Twice
