S A F E T Y
Machinery & Equipment MRO
April 2021
KEEPING YOUR EMPLOYEES ENGAGED IN SAFETY Taking the time to keep employees engaged in program development, interested in ongoing training and involved with continuous improvement will help everyone keep safety top of mind.
H
ealth and safety are important in any situation, especially in the workplace. But how do you keep your employees engaged, interested and involved in keeping safe work practices top of mind? A good practice to keep your employees safe at work is to have a comprehensive, integrated health and safety program for the organization. This program should include a series of strategies, policies and related activities and initiatives developed by the employer, with involvement from the employees, health and safety commi ee and the union. The program must be fully communicated to the employees, implemented throughout the or-
in a realistic se ing resulted in the highest retention. Therefore, it only makes sense to ensure your training programs and courses include elements that actively involve the employee and include their participation. Communicating safe work practices does not start and stop with a new hire. While it is a crucial element during the orientation process, it is equally important to provide ongoing safety and refresher trainings to existing employees. Implementing these strategies into training and re-training on an on-going basis will help everyone develop a safety-first a itude.
Here are some tips to ensure that your organization is adhering to ganization, integrated into business prac- health and safety guidelines:
tices and evaluated on an ongoing basis. Ideally, the first step in increasing employee involvement in safety is to effectively train staff and promote a strong safety culture when new hires are onboarded. Studies have shown that the level of employee engagement in training is a key factor in an organization’s safety program effectiveness. Training that uses spoken or wri en multimedia presentations, but requires li le or no active participation by the employee, has minimal impact on reducing workplace incidents. On the other hand, training that engages the employee and involves hands-on practice
• Always ensure that your comprehensive workplace health and safety program is o¥en referenced by your management team and that it is easily accessible to all employees. This can help set the tone that safety and the well-being of the employees are a top priority. • Organize regular re-training sessions for managers and supervisors on conducting safety audits, workplace inspections and incident investigations. Wherever possible, involve them in the health and safety program, and have them participate in new-hire safety orientations and lead safety toolbox
Photo: Nunkung / Adobe Stock
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