Safety Training
What are the benefits of Safety Training to businesses?
Training on safety is fundamental in the workplace. It is a legal requirement to gain health and safety training to protect yourself and employees from injury and illness.
Stats on the HSE website reveal the health and safety injury landscape:
- 142 Workers killed at work in 2020/21
- 1.7 million working people suffering from a work-related illness, of which
- 822,000 workers suffering work-related stress, depression or anxiety
- 470,000 workers suffering from a work-related musculoskeletal disorder
- 93,000 workers suffering from COVID-19 which they believe may have been from exposure to coronavirus at work
- 2,544 mesothelioma deaths due to past asbestos exposures (2020)
- 123 workers killed at work (2021/22)
- 441,000 working people sustained an injury at work according to the Labour Force Survey
- 51,211 injuries to employees reported under RIDDOR
By taking the time to put your staff on health and safety training courses through either IOSH, CITB or NEBOSH courses, you are not only meeting your legal requirements but also providing the necessary training that is so essential to protect your employees.
So what the benefits that health and safety training bring to businesses?
Training Safety improves employee awareness
Every industry has its health and safety hazards within the workplace. By giving your employees health and safety training, every employee will be aware of these. Some hazards may not seem obvious and therefore staff may miss them such as trailing power chords, or manual handling. By giving them the training required, you are arming them with the knowledge needed to be as safe as possible in the workplace.
Less workplace injuries due to health and safety training
By training staff with the relevant health and safety information required, you are more likely to have less workplace injuries reducing costs due to employee absence. Injuries could be as small as minor sickness to in the worst instance death, so it is absolutely vital staff have the knowledge to minimise this. For example, by training them on manual handling, you can reduce back problems.
Happier staff
By taking the time to train your staff in health and safety, they feel more valued and therefore will invest more within your business. They will know you care about them and this will increase employee morale. They are less likely to leave your company and move elsewhere therefore reducing recruitment and training costs, and time. Health and safety training also highlights the seriousness of health and safety and highlights how everyone is responsible for it. Our health and safety training courses do this but in a fun and engaging way.
Higher productivity
When staff are trained properly in health and safety, they will be healthier and fitter and therefore can work more productively than those that are unwell.
Compliance with health and safety laws
The law lays out very clear rules for health and safety in the workplace. These vary for different industries, as a school would have very different health and safety laws to a construction site, however it is essential to follow these laws to not only protect your employees but also to avoid costly fines, or even worse, imprisonment.
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 states that “the provision of such information, instruction, training and supervision as is necessary to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety at work of his employees” and this must be adhered to.
Boost the strength of your brand reputation
Your business reputation could be seriously damaged if you are seen to be negligent in the workplace and there are accidents. This could be due to inadequate training for specific machinery or getting your staff to work too long hours. Preventing this from happening by proper health and safety training can strengthen your brand reputation. Also, if employees see you are investing in looking after your staff, this will also encourage people to want to work for you.
If you need health and safety training for your workforce, we offer IOSH, CITB or NEBOSH courses, to help meet your health and safety requirements depending on the industry you are in. Get in touch with us today on info@southwesthealthandsafety.com or +44 (0)1264 874466.
Tags: Businesses