Consider this: companies that implement comprehensive Environmental, Health and Safety (EHS) training programs report a staggering 218% higher income per employee than those that don't.
Beyond the bottom line, these programs boost productivity - by 17%! In fact, 59% of employees believe that training directly improves their performance.
It’s clear that when employees are well-trained, they work safer, smarter and more efficiently. Yet, despite these benefits, some organizations still overlook the crucial role that EHS training plays.
In this article, we will explore the influence of EHS training on company productivity including:
EHS (environmental, health, and safety) training helps prevent injuries and illnesses among employees, ensures that your company meets legal standards, and fosters a culture of safety. This type of training touches on everything from understanding workplace hazards and reducing risks, to managing environmental impacts and preventing accidents. In simple terms, it’s about keeping everyone safe and making sure we’re doing things by the book.
Environmental - Issues related to environmental management, sustainability, and protecting the environment. Health - Employee health, wellness, and occupational health and safety. Safety - Preventing accidents, injuries, and illnesses through proper safety procedures. |
Key areas covered in EHS training include:
It is an effective practice that encourages employees to actively participate in EHS. At the same time, it ensures businesses meet and exceed their ethical and legal requirements to provide a healthy and safe workplace.
Companies have a legal obligation to provide appropriate EHS training for their staff members or employees. These legal considerations come from an employment safety requirement that exists at the federal, state, and local levels. Essential regs in OSHA, EPA, DOT, and worker safety laws at the state level are what demand EHS training.
Here's a table outlining the regulations from OSHA, EPA, and DOT related to Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) training:
Regulation | Agency | Description | Reference |
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.120 | OSHA | The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) standard mandates EHS training for workers involved in hazardous waste operations. This includes initial training for new hires, as well as annual refresher training. | OSHA Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response |
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.119 | OSHA | The Process Safety Management (PSM) standard requires employers to provide comprehensive training to employees involved in processes covered by the standard. Training must cover process hazards, operating procedures, emergency response, and other relevant topics. | OSHA Process Safety Management |
EPA 40 CFR 262.17 | EPA | The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) mandates training for personnel involved in hazardous waste management. Training topics include waste identification, handling, storage, and emergency procedures. | EPA Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) |
DOT 49 CFR Part 172, Subpart H | DOT | The Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) require hazmat employees to undergo training to ensure they can recognize and respond to hazards associated with the transportation of hazardous materials. Training must cover general awareness, function-specific, safety, and security awareness topics. | DOT Hazardous Materials Regulations |
Not abiding by EHS training regulations can lead to substantial penalty charges applied by regulatory agencies. The diseases, workers' injuries, or deaths that could have been averted via proper training would be lucrative to sue for. Keeping to legal requirements remains the fundamental incentive for companies to build robust EHS training systems.
A brand name is one of the most essential assets for any business to develop. Companies that apply environmental, health, and safety methods are the most likely ones to be viewed as responsible or caring companies by the majority of the population.
Customers quite often want to purchase products from reliable companies that have health, environmental and safety integrity rather than those with safety problems and violations. A good place to start closing the gap and eliminating EHS incidents is training.
An effective EHS program has been proven to help increase employee morale and high productivity. Team members appreciate the care and attention that organizations take regarding their well-being. EHS training displays a firm's value to its employees by protecting them. It proves management's analytical thinking and putting health first. Employees can equally play an active role in their own safety as well as the safety of co-workers.
Productivity is strongly associated with EHS job training. Skilled employees rarely make faults, rarely are injured, and rarely miss unplanned days. EHS trainings teach staff how they use their equipment and work in a safe manner. As a result, fewer people get injured or have unexpected maintenance needs.
Thanks to the implementation of such systems, employees have more chances to work effectively, which eventually leads to greater productivity. Another expense to mention is that there are also savings from fewer incidents, fines and compensation for the workers.
Christopher Vardanyan, co-founder at Rocket Moving Services, shares "Safety is a priority at Rocket Moving, particularly when organizing complex relocations involving heavy lifting and logistics. Through the implementation of robust EHS training, we’ve seen a 22% reduction in on-site accidents, significantly improving both our operational efficiency and our ability to meet tight deadlines. This commitment to safety doesn’t just benefit our employees; it fosters trust with our clients, who can rely on us to handle their moves securely and efficiently."
A productive EHS training program needs comprehensive planning and a keen approach. The first thing is to run a "needs assessment" and define spaces for current employees’ knowledge, skills, or abilities with the EHS policy, procedure, and regulation. This appraisal should, therefore, take into account previous incidents, injuries, close calls, and audit-related findings that will expose core weaknesses.
Once the needs are identified, specific competencies can be determined for the course. Objectives should be set as SMART- that is, specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. Objectives that are well articulated contribute to the formulation of the content of training that is highly probable to achieve the set objectives and gauge the effectiveness of the training.
After being ready with needs and objectives, the following step is designing the curriculum and tools.
Conduct a series of instructional designs such as the training format (classroom, ehs training online, on-the-job, etc.), instruction methods, content structure, and activities that will facilitate learning. The plan requires that the content supports exactly the program goals.
Some training solutions include:
Training solution | How does it work? |
Learning Management Systems (LMS) | LMS solutions distribute lessons to employees through web-based or installed software applications. They offer various course styles including text blocks, video presentations, quizzes, interactive games, and role-play activities. |
In-Person Training | In-person training resembles a classroom setup where an instructor delivers lectures, answers questions, and administers tests. However, it can be slow, resource-intensive, and may not cover modern technologies and realities. |
For organizations seeking more efficient and comprehensive solutions, SafetyIQ offers the latest integrated training and EHS software system. It provides a single platform for compliance, incident management, corrective actions, recordkeeping, and ensuring that all employees are appropriately qualified and trained.
A thorough needs assessment is crucial for identifying gaps in EHS knowledge and skills.
Key steps include:
Analyzing these data points provides tangible evidence of safety risks and training opportunities. The needs assessment sets the foundation for developing targeted, effective EHS training.
An effective EHS training program contains:
Here is an example of how companies can employ EHS training software:
Vaya Space, a pioneering vortex-hybrid rocket engine company, transformed the industry’s safety standards with the help of SafetyIQ. The company effectively managed its safety protocols by employing SafetyIQ’s EHS software solution. This software helped Vaya Space capture, prioritize, and control workplace hazards, schedule and assign standardized audits and inspections, build configurable dashboards for advanced safety analytics, and monitor staff training from a bird’s eye view. With automated reminders for daily inspections and required training, all employees are fully prepared and compliant before using any equipment. Managers can easily verify the completion of inspections and training straight from the app. "I don't have to go and ask them an embarrassing question; have you been trained? And them being offended that I don't remember. I can actually just pull out my phone, pull up the training tracker, Boom, there it is. I know that person's trained." Brooks Kimmel, Director of Safety Engineering at Vaya Space This example of Vaya Space demonstrates how companies can employ EHS training programs to ensure the safety and well-being of their employees, particularly those involved in complex operations. SafetyIQ enabled the company to stay ahead of potential issues, strengthen safety protocols, and transform data into actionable insights. |
Training evaluation metrics are used to gauge progress and effectiveness. Well-designed programs improve EHS compliance, reduce incidents, and equip workers with safety knowledge relevant to their jobs. The result is a stronger safety culture and lower risk.
It is crucial to assess EHS training programs to ensure they are achieving the desired outcomes. Metrics to evaluate effectiveness include:
By regularly monitoring these metrics over time, companies can identify gaps, modify programs, and demonstrate the ROI of EHS training.
SafetyIQ serves as a pivotal tool in facilitating Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) compliance within organizations. It offers a focused module of Training Tracker, which is designed to manage the training requirements for specific roles or tasks within an organization.
The company determines the training requirements and if an employee is assigned a role or task that requires specific training, the Training Tracker notifies them to complete the necessary training. This includes reminders for repeat training if a certificate expires.
This feature eases the manager’s burden as they can easily track and monitor their employees’ training status, ensuring that they have the qualifications to do their job safely and legally.
Overall, SafetyIQ’s EHS system provides organizations with the tools they need to effectively manage their workforce’s safety training requirements, ultimately fostering a culture of safety and compliance.
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