Workplace Safety Training Program
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Workplace Safety Training Program
Since the September 11th Terrorist attacks, there has been an increased focus on fire safety within the workplace environment. Manufacturing and industrial sites are more prone to workplace fires. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reports nearly 4000 annual fire-related deaths in the United States. One of the best ways to ensure employee safety is to establish a high-quality fire safety training program that teaches employees about fire hazards, fire prevention practices and suitable human response in the event of a fire. The proposed safety training program includes all the necessary components and processes to ensure employee safety from workplace fires.
Fire Safety Training Objectives
Fire prevention and the saving of human life during fire events are two needs that can be met through effective training. The fire safety training course will be designed to enhance worker awareness on how to respond safely to unanticipated fires. Participants will receive fire safety notes at the beginning of the course. The training sessions will require a minimum of three hours and require both virtual and physical classrooms. Training will be delivered at specific times and premises. At the end of the fire safety training programs, participants will be able to:
- Identify different types of fires and fire hazards in the workplace,
- describe the chemistry of blazes,
- follow evacuation procedures,
- select and apply suitable firefighting devices.
The course targets all employees regardless of career or industry sector. Certification is awarded upon the successful completion of the training program.
Activity-Based Learning Concepts
Before creating a fire safety training plan, the process begins with an employee needs assessment. The examination looks at the workers’ fire safety needs to determine learning objectives and training methodology (Keller & Cunningham, 2016). Best practice demands the inclusion of a fire expert, such as a state firefighter, to assist with the employee needs assessment. It is common knowledge that fire evacuation requires high levels of organization and collaboration between workers. The training program will include warm-up exercises, such as the old Mack ladder, to enhance employee collaboration. The exercise entails employees engaging in ladder drills based on trust and teamwork (Keller & Cunningham, 2016). A ‘try-pass-it-on’ exercise is equally important in enhancing collaboration and teamwork. The training session will solidify individual characters while improving operational efficiency during the mitigation of workplace fires.
Training Resources and Materials
The fire training program will seek to borrow and refine best fire prevention and control practices. Therefore, the training will access recent publications by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). The training will also include concepts and findings in recent scientific studies on fire prevention and control from credible scientific databases. Aside from a physical classroom, the training will require an active workplace portal for free individual access. The portal will facilitate the rolling out of online training, which improves the reach of fire safety knowledge and employee engagement (Rossler et al. 2019). Employees will access micro-learning videos and simulations via the online platform. The training sessions will have to outsource external experts, such as emergency medical personnel, firefighters and police officers, to provide knowledge on how to behave and assist others during fires. The external personnel will play a critical role in the in-house development of fire prevention champions and coordination with industry representatives and state fire agencies.
Training Delivery and Participant Feedback
Each training session will cover a distinct fire prevention and control topic. Different external experts will cover the different training sessions. For instance, a firefighter will teach about the various fire protection equipment, such as helmets and extinguishers, while an emergency medical officer will cover first aid. Occupational safety requires high levels of collaboration between members of multidisciplinary teams (Smedley et al. 2013). Participants will receive a handy hardcover manual for future referencing when required. The LPM portal will include spaces for post-classroom discussions for enhanced employee engagement. Each session will entail a post-discussion question, which encourages worker interaction for feedback collection (Smedley et al. 2013). The portal will also include sessional digital surveys to collect employee feedback to determine the effectiveness of the training program. The use of open-ended questions will encourage employees to provide honest feedback regarding the nature and impact of the training program.
Training Evaluation Method
Training assessment will focus on four key areas: reaction, learning, behaviour, and results. The program has to determine whether it results in positive outcomes in terms of employee response time, employee knowledge, employee conduct and training results. The training program will use the time taken to evacuate as a key performance indicator for employee response time. Employee learning uses plain test exams to determine how much the participants grasp fire-related concepts in class. The same approach is applicable in determining changes in employee behaviours regarding fire prevention. Visual animations can be integrated into the evaluation process to provide additional details. The last measurement technique is Philips Return on Investment (ROI). The approach uses corporate performance data to identify productivity improvements. In this case, KPIs can include the number of fire-related injuries per year, losses associated with fire, increased profits due to fire prevention and process improvements. Sample questions for the first three key assessment areas can include:
- What is the average time taken to completely evacuate the office following the announcement of a fire?
- Does excessive noise and movement impede the timely evacuation of people during fires?
- Foam fire extinguishers are suitable for which classes of fire?
- Describe the process of removing and using a fire extinguisher.
- What is an assembly point?
References
Keller, B. M., & Cunningham, T. R. (2016). Firefighters as distributors of workplace safety and health information to small businesses. Safety Science, 87, 87–91. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2016.03.022
Rossler, K. L., Sankaranarayanan, G., & Duvall, A. (2019). Acquisition of fire safety knowledge and skills with virtual reality simulation. Nurse Educator, 44(2), 88–92. https://doi.org/10.1097/NNE.0000000000000551
Smedley, J., Dick, F., & Sadhra, S. S. (2013). Oxford handbook of occupational health. Oxford University Press.