Okay if you are like me — you probably aren't — you read industrial hygienist and think it is about teeth... no? just me? Okay. Well, a quick Google search caught me back up to speed.
"Industrial Hygiene is a science and art devoted to the anticipation, recognition, evaluation, prevention, and control of those environmental factors or stresses arising in or from the workplace which may cause sickness, impaired health and well being, or significant discomfort among workers or citizens of the community." (source)
Now that my brain is done having a Monday moment let's continue.
If you asked my husband what my "mantra" is he would probably say, "Be proactive, not reactive." I love this concept. I like to think that those with a focus on industrial hygiene feel the same way. Safety concerns can not just about being reactive. We can't live in a world where we wait for someone to get hurt and then train on a topic.
Today we are going to give you four guidelines to make sure your workplace is proactive not reactive when it comes to safety training.
If you have not delivered safety training in the last 30 days, you need to stop right now. Go to vingapp.com and chat our team. We can have you up and delivering training by the end of the week (maybe even sooner). If you already have training and you just need to send it — get to it! It is nearly impossible for your employees to retain all the information they are learning. It is up to you to keep in fresh in their minds.
When thinking about keeping things fresh in your employee's minds, you should consider short, personalized videos that include just one safety tip. These can be something you share daily or even weekly at first. Start by sharing tips that are common mistakes or cause of injury. Keep your videos casual and short.
This guideline is one that people often overlook. DO NOT JUST SCROLL PAST THIS ONE! We take feedback very seriously. It is not complicated. Use an online training tool that allows you to gather feedback at least every 90 days. Your employees are in the field doing their jobs every single day. No one knows the safety concerns and annoyances better than them.
Okay, so it is hard to put a gauge on what is acceptable in the world of safety training. In theory, it would be glorious if 100% of your employees did their safety training 100% of the time. I for sure believe you can get there but let's not shoot ourselves in the foot and get discouraged by low numbers. Continue to remind your employees why you are sharing the training with them and why it is essential. The other crucial part here is to make sure there are consequences.
I believe that to be successful at anything you have to start with small goals and then build up to your build goal. So this is all I am giving you today. Evaluate your training off these four facts. Give yourself six months and work at accomplishing these four first.