How can training reduce accidents in The Construction Industry

Health and Safety in the workplace

It is increasingly important to have a health and safety policy within the workplace. Records prove that with education and good record keeping it minimises accidents and brings awareness by all to prevent incidents occurring.There are many good institutions such as Chas and Construction Line to ensure that high standards are maintained by all the workforce and a proactive record keeping kept.

There has been a big reduction in deaths/serious injuries and dangerous occurances the last 20 years according to RIDDOR(reporting of injuries,diseases and dangerous occurances) and education and training are some of the key reasons for reduction, however the construction industry is still one of the most dangerous accounting for 11% of total reported incidents with only having 5% of the workforce.

What can be done to improve safety awareness?

Onsite training

There are many different ways to refresh employees on health and safety and a good practice is to conduct regular “Toolbox Talks”.These can be random subjects selected by employers or can indeed be put forward by employees themselves to discuss possible scenarios and the dangers to look out for to prevent incidents occurring.They may also be used to discuss a near miss and what could have been done to prevent, with open discussions within the group and making people aware of possible dangers.

Records and discussions should be minuted and dispersed to all staff and any questions that were raised should have answers given to ensure clarity on given subjects.

Specialist Training

In the ever changing workplace it may be necessary to carry out specialist training for employees to ensure that they are well equipped to carry out their jobs safely, without causing risks or injuries to fellow employees or 3rd party workforce. Training can range from working at heights training to asbestos awareness-management.

It has been proven that with correct training, projects will be carried out more safely and therefore less risk of injury to all, whilst proactively maintaining high standards.

Site Specific Inductions

On commencement of a new project it is important for management to carry out a fres full site induction with employees for many reasons.

To make all staff aware of the possible dangers within the workplace as well as instructing them what the procedure is should a near miss be witnessed.
Staff should also be made aware of who the first aiders are and where the nearest hospitals are in case of emergencies .
Risk assessments and Method statements will already have been produced by a manager and these should be read through thoroughly to ensure that they are understood and that everyone has a clear vision on how the work is to be carried in a safe manner. Once these are read, employees should sign the provided register as a record which is then made available for any inspections that are too be carried out by Health and Safety personnel.
Welfare facilities are also to be discussed which locations highlighted to all.
Evacuation routes and muster points are to be discussed and everyone needs to be made aware of their location.
Ensuring that staff know the importance of and where the onsite daily register book is this will enable site management to be fully aware of employees on site at any given time should an incident occur.

A fully trained and regularly briefed team on health and safety has been proven to lower the chances on incidents as well as educating employees on the things to look out for to prevent possible incidents in the future.Staff feel safer within the workplace and clients are comfortable in the knowledge that the company they have employed are fully proactive in training and monitoring their workforce to keep incidents to a minimum.

Health & Safety Advisors

Employing 3rd party health & safety advisors ensures that you are always compliant with legislation and are acting one step ahead. At Powercor, we employ THSP (The Health & Safety Company). Our dedicated consultant carries our regular audits of our sites and records and works with us to ensure that the safety of our staff, clients and those in the environment around our working practices is of the utmost importance.