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Industrial Safety Training to Help Keep Your Workers Safe

Safety is the single most important aspect of a work environment, and industrial safety training can make a huge difference. After all, how can anyone even be productive if they don’t feel safe? It is the responsibility of the both the employer and employees to establish a safe working environment. For any organization to remain profitable in the long-term, the entire workforce must play their respective parts in ensuring the safety of individuals in the building. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) is responsible for enforcing compliance in the workplace to minimize cases of work-related injury, illness, or fatality.

OSHA provides leadership and encouragement to improve the health and safety of employees in a working environment. It offers businesses in different sectors of the economy, including training and education, compliance assistance, consultation outreach, partnership, and other tools to help maintain high levels of safety in the workplace.

Safety Hazards in an Industrial Workplace

An industrial workplace has a lot of moving parts and often requires working at heights. Forklifts are one of the leading causes of workplace accidents. Forklift-related accidents can occur when employees feel compelled to work quickly. The pressure forces the employees to take shortcuts and increase their work speed, for example, driving huge loads. With a load of that size, even the smallest distraction can lead to an accident. The end-result of such situations is avoidable mishaps that lead to employee injuries, destruction of products or property, a collision with a person or object, etc.

This makes the industrial workplace one of the riskiest working environments for employees, employers, and visitors. Falls account for a significant percentage of industrial workplace injuries. OSHA data shows that ladders and scaffolding are among the most frequently cited workplace safety violations. Other frequently identified industrial workplace hazards include confined spaces, lockout/tagout problems, electricity, housekeeping, and chemicals. Now that we know the leading workplace hazards in an industrial environment, what steps can we take to keep workers safe on the job?

Proper Training

The above hazards don’t present an exhaustive list, but most of them are unique to an industrial workplace. There are many other safety hazards in an industrial workplace. Focusing on prevention is key to keeping the workplace free from accidents. One of the ways to prevent workplace injuries is having a comprehensive training program for every employee in your company. The industrial safety training program should commence upon the hiring of a new employee.

During this period, the company should provide an introductory course on occupational health and safety. The training should continue even after the new hire joins a department. In an industrial workplace, training should be focused on hazard recognition and the development of a proactive attitude.

One of the major workplace hazards in an industrial workplace as indicated above is poor housekeeping. A good example of poor housekeeping in an industrial workplace is over-stacking loads on racks in a warehouse or blocking fire exits with clutter. Leaks or clutter can cause tripping, slipping, or falls.

Your training program should include specialized cleanup training. Office and emergency access doors should not be cluttered. Proper clean up training helps employees to avoid poor housekeeping mishaps in the workplace. Train your employees on how to handle pressure when it’s required of them. Also, incorporate a little training on handling electrical hazards.

Importance of Industrial Safety Training

Any kind of employee training — including safety training — is expensive. However, focusing on the cost of safety training and ignoring its benefits is a bad move. Yes, training comes with some upfront costs, but it can really save the company a lot of money in the backend. The occurrence of an accident that results in any kind of damage, injury. or fatality can be very expensive for a business.

Proper training programs help companies reduce the occurrence of workplace accidents thus saving the company monies in workers comp and hundreds, or possibly thousands of lost work hours. Having a proper training exercise in your business is a worthwhile investment, and a successful business is all about good investments.

Additionally, proper training programs help the business with compliance issues. The occurrence of an accident that results in injury or fatality of an employee will prompt an investigation. If the company is found to be in violation of compliance regulations, the consequences will be dire. The lawsuits that will follow such an occurrence can cripple the business, not to mention that the authorities could force the company to cease operations.

Compared to that reality, there’s no disputing that training workers properly in industrial safety courses is a much better idea.

Interested in learning more about how to keep your workplace safe and your workers educated in the latest technology? Connect with a friendly representative from NTT Training today to find out more information.

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