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We often get asked, “How should we structure PPE training for new employees?”

As safety professionals, it’s crucial to ensure all employees, especially new hires, understand the importance of PPE and how to use it properly. I’d love to hear your thoughts on how you've implemented or improved PPE training at your workplace.

Here are some key points from our PPE Safety Training Guide:

  1. Risk Awareness:
    How do you incorporate hazard identification into your training? Do you tie PPE usage to specific risks?

  2. Interactive Demonstrations:
    What hands-on activities do you use to ensure employees can confidently fit, use, and maintain PPE? Do you tailor training to specific roles?

  3. Ongoing Training:
    How do you keep employees up to date with PPE compliance? What’s your approach to refresher programs?

  4. Tracking & Accountability:
    What systems do you use to document and track training? How do you identify gaps in understanding or adherence to PPE rules?

What’s worked best for you, and have you faced any challenges with new employees?

 

Here are some key points from our PPE Safety Training Guide:

 

Risk Awareness:

How do you incorporate hazard identification into your training? Do you tie PPE usage to specific risks?

It is part of the risk assessment. 

The PPE is identified and a pictogram added with the Standard that applies to the specific PPE

I have mentioned previously about SC having a better Risk Assessment tool as this would then be able to link everything from type of PPE accepted by an individual via the RA. 

 

The link may also include specific awareness, training and practicals required. 

The awareness would then be assigned to the user who is accepting the RA. 

Then during inspections and asett checks this can be reviewed as compliant or not. 

 

This is the embedding phase and links personnel with Risk Assessments and safe systems of work to the respective PPE etc. This would this create a flow and autonomous system and process. 

 

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Interactive Demonstrations:

What hands-on activities do you use to ensure employees can confidently fit, use, and maintain PPE? Do you tailor training to specific roles?

 

As above would link this with the RAas a pre cursor. 

We already undertake training etc for some PPE but not all so going forward we would do this based upon risk by rating the risk if PPE not used or not fitted and used correctly. So this is an opportunity for us in SC training and one for SC really if they can close the gap with an interactive RA process. 

 

I would also add the following which is an issue on many fast paced sites ref PPE. 

 

Usage collation by us. If as per the big feedback I have we had all personnel linked within SC then we could have a qr code for PPE that is then signed at at point of use. Then we have the start of interaction of personnel, PPE use and potential to understand the effectiveness not only for people using but the areas of work and activities it is used in. 

 

Ongoing Training:

How do you keep employees up to date with PPE compliance? What’s your approach to refresher programs?

 

At the moment we do not have standard processes apart from RPE, Harnesses and high risk PPE. 

However I will be building modules to take the place of toolbox talks that are interactive with SC training and Edapps as this will be the effective linked to show immediate gaps and to close knowledge gaps for PPE use

 

Tracking & Accountability:

What systems do you use to document and track training? How do you identify gaps in understanding or adherence to PPE rules

 

I think I have mentioned all of that above. Via all the feedback I have given I feel we are at the crossroads with regards to PPE, people and risk assessments.

 

You have mentioned in post and topics about legal compliance and accreditation systems etc. This will imo give SC the boost it needs to interact in the system and not outside it. 

 

RAs and Methods of work along with personal data including PPE usage and training... Are all viable I think in your system not outside. 

 

I will sound like I am repeating myself and apologise but we really need all personnel on the SC not just premium users

 

Regards Johnny

 

 


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