Safety Training Beyond the Basics Gary Williams Vice President – Training and Education G&G Risk Management Consultants, Inc.

The Value of Training Quality training: – Prevents injuries and fatalities – Improves morale and and organization’s overall safety culture – Decreases overall operating costs – Increases profits

The Value of Training In effective training, the students should learn: – How to identify safety and health problems – How to analyze causes of safety and health problems – How to bring about safer, healthier workplaces – How to involve co-workers in the process

Objectives At the conclusion of this presentation, attendees should: – Understand the importance of training – Understand how adults learn – Be able to conduct a needs assessment – Be familiar with OSHA training requirements

Characteristics of a Sound Training Program Accurate Credible Clear Practical

Preparing For Effective Training A training program development should follow a systematic process: – Needs assessment – Learning objectives – Course design – Evaluation strategy – Criteria for completion

Preparing For Effective Training  Course introduction  Motivation – What’s in it for me?  Course objectives  Main presentation  Summary  Student evaluation

HOW ADULTS LEARN

How Adults Learn  Adults are self-motivated  Adults expect to gain information that has immediate application to their lives  Adults learn best when they are actively engaged  Most effective when designed to develop both technical knowledge and skills

How Adults Learn Learn best when they have time to interact – With instructor – With each other Learn best when asked to share personal experiences at work and at home

Principles of Adult Education  Adults are voluntary learners  Adults learn fastest what they need the most  Life experiences need to be acknowledged  Adults need to be treated with respect  Adults learn more when they participate in the learning process

Principles of Adult Education Adults learn best by doing Adults need to know where they are heading Adults learn best when new information is reinforced and repeated Adults learn better when information is presented in different ways

Three Kinds of Learning Exchanges  Participant to Participant  Students learn from each other  Participate to Facilitator  Facilitator can learn from students  Facilitator to Participant  Facilitator guides discussion, encourages participation, provides information and highlights key issues/points

Environmental & Learning Needs Assessment  Does the learning environment encourage active participation?  Does the social environment encourage participation?  Does the program effectively promote participatory learning activities?  How effectively do lectures in the program encourage participation?

Environmental & Learning Needs Assessment How effective are the participatory activities used in the program? How effectively do the case studies and role-playing activities encourage participation? How effectively does the organization of the program encourage participation?

Environmental & Learning Needs Assessment Is the program sensitive to literacy differences? Do the audio-visual used by the training program encourage participation?

Motivation Techniques  Show the student the immediate application  Engage the student’s sense of duty  Family  Employer  It’s the right thing to do  Reinforce the value of the worker’s lives and health  Provide statistical data

Learning Activities Listen Ask questions Write Read Plan actions Look at visuals Discuss critical issues Practice with equipment Identify problems Try out new strategies

DEVELOPING THE PROGRAM

Instructional Development The ADDIE Model – Analyze the student’s needs – Design the structure of the course (objectives) – Development of specific course content – Implementation of program or delivery of course – Evaluation of students to determine if objectives have been met

Training Objectives The SMART Module – Specific to what students should achieve – Measurable to whether objectives are met – Achievable results of objectives – Relevant to the desired results – Time-boundaries set for objectives

Training Objectives  Objectives must:  State the learner’s performance  Contain a specific action verb ▪ Avoid Learn, Know, Understand (not measurable)  Have workplace relevance  Be observable  Be measureable  Be SPECIFIC

Training Objectives  Used to ensure the program will have the desired effect “By the end of this course, the student will be able to: Identify four protective measures to be used in a trench to prevent worker injuries and death due to soil collapse.”

Reach All Literacy Levels Do not assume all students are equally skilled Allow students to work in small groups Use teaching techniques that don’t require reading Establish a non-threatening learning environment Do not expect students to read aloud or individually Ask for volunteers to answer questions

Reach All Literacy Levels Use a variety of audio-visual methods Read all instructions out loud Make handouts easy to read Only give out critical material to read Explain terms, abbreviations etc. Assume nothing Ask for volunteers to answer questions

Three Learning Styles People learn in three ways: – Visual – Audio – Kinesthetic (hands on) Incorporate ALL THREE styles – Visual – Photos, Handouts, Props – Audios – Stories, Videos, Lecture – Kinesthetic – Demonstrations, Group Activities and Exercises

The Power of Visual Aids  People retain:  10% of what they read  20% of what they hear  30% of what they see  50% of what they see and hear  70% of what they say  90% of what they say and do

The Power of Visual Aids You can say… “OSHA requires you to wear fall protection while exposed to fall hazards” OR…

Delivery Techniques Do: – Be prepared – Practice your presentation – Show a positive attitude – Dress appropriately – Be flexible – Have fun Don’t: – Wing it – Avoid eye contact – Embarrass participants – Be afraid to say you don’t know – Say you know when you don’t – Lose control

Evaluation To ensure training was effective: – Quizzes – Written examinations – Oral examinations – Demonstrations and observations of skills

MOVING BEYOND POWER POINT

Group Activities  Base activities on course objectives – Be creative  Discussion of case studies  Find the hazards and describe corrective action  Games such as “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire”  Group projects  Build scaffold in parking lot  Field trip – jobsite tour

Videos Make them relevant Ideally should be shorter in length Should enhance training, not replace it Keep them up to date

Vendor Resources Vendor demonstrations – Fall protection trailer – Lift operations – Scaffolding – Trenching and excavation

OSHA TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

Employer’s Obligation Employer has obligation to: – Ensure work will be performed in a safe and healthful manner – Ensure training provided is effective – Training is performed in a language the employee understands – Perform training that meets not only the intent of the standard but the language of the standard

Employer’s Obligation Compliance Safety & Health Officers are responsible for verifying training has been performed – Observing activities – Speaking with employees – Providing copies of training records may not be enough

Training Requirements Too numerous – research standards Some examples: – Forklift – Confined Space – Lock Out Tag Out – Fall Protection

Q&A and Contact Information Gary Williams Vice President – Training & Education G&G Risk Management Consultants, Inc