Noah hasn’t chosen his career path yet but is very interested in auto mechanics. He is working part-time in a private garage, learning the basics of the trade. In my discussions with him I am concerned that he is possibly being used as cheap labour which rings all kinds of bells with me.

Is he being taught the correct way of doing things or is he being shown how to take shortcuts for maximum profit? What training has he been given regarding the use of equipment such as car lifts, the use of chemicals/solvents, electrical equipment, compressed air, the dangers of gas/diesel exhaust? The list goes on.

Never does something become so important as when it affects one personally. I will do my best to educate him on looking after himself.

The key word is education, regardless of the trade or profession. Learning something for the first time occurs much faster than unlearning it and relearning something new. Once something is learned incorrectly, it becomes very difficult to change a bad habit. The main, evidence-backed time frame for habit-breaking, suggests it can take anywhere from 18 to 254 days. In other words, to set expectations appropriately, it can take anywhere from two months to eight months to build a new behavior, not 18 days.

That is why employer training and patience are key when it comes to training new and young employees as well as long-time, mature employees who have done the same thing over and over for years.

Health and safety training helps create a safer work environment where employees are better able to focus on tasks without worrying about their personal safety. This enhanced focus will result in higher work output and an increase in productivity and profits. An added bonus is worker satisfaction and higher morale; whereby, workers will put forth their best efforts. Both workplace parties are rewarded; workers, whose employers ensure their safety, will reward those employers with loyalty and higher performance.

I reflect on my own path when I was nineteen and entering post-secondary education. The last thing I thought about was my mortality; I was young and had my life ahead of me. Noah is now at that crossroads. From my vantage point, I want only for him to live a long, fulfilled life free from worry, pain, or any barriers to achieving that.

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of December.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post HE’S AN ADULT NOW appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.

On these walks I regularly see roofers at work. All too often the workers are young, students perhaps or those with minimal education and doing a job that is both hard and hard on the body. Naturally I wonder what kind of training they’ve been given. How often I shudder when I see them working without the personal protective equipment needed for the job. Worse still are the workers who are wearing their safety harnesses, however, attached to nothing. Usually, the ropes and lanyards are lying on the roof.

Three hazards in one:

1. The workers are wearing harnesses that hamper them but aren’t doing the job for which they are intended because they’re not attached to a lifeline.
2. The ropes and lanyards just lying on the roof are a tripping hazard.
3. Worker lack of understanding of the purpose of the PPE and frustration, maybe even anger that the equipment is more of a bother than a help.

Then I look at the vehicles that these workers have arrived in. In most cases, and this is not precise research, but an observation over years, these vehicles do not identify the roofing company. That tells me that the owners do not take pride in their company, do not want to be identified by showing their name on their vehicles and are avoiding possibly being reported to the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) by passersby.

Twice this summer I confronted onsite workers asking why they weren’t wearing their lifelines. In the first instance it was actually the owner/supervisor who told me that they would attach once the shingle packs had been offloaded the lifting device. The building being re-shingled was a three-story commercial establishment with a steep pitch. The workers had their harnesses on and were carrying the heavy shingle packs up the incline while having to step over the lifelines laying on the roof. I walked away and when I passed later in the day, not one of the workers was attached to a lifeline but hey, they had their harnesses on. Yes, I called the MLITSD.

I’m willing to bet dollars to donuts that the workers had working at heights training to satisfy Ministry requirements; however, the supervisors did not have the training to know what their personal liability was in the event of a tragic accident.

It’s all about knowing the facts, having responsible owners who value their employees and provide the right training, equipment and supervision. Those are the employers who proudly display their logos and brands on their vehicles. Those are the employers potential workers should be looking for to keep them healthy and safe.

If you’re not comfortable with it, DON’T DO IT!

Watch for next month’s Blog published in the first week of November.

Sincerely,

Carola Mittag

Consultant and Editor for Mentor Safety Consultants Inc.

The post JUST WALKING BY appeared first on Mentor Safety Consultants - A Safety Co Partner.