Building site health and safety training for workers is crucial, but how is it transforming the construction industry as a whole? Our team of training experts explain the benefits of training and how you and your team can make the most of it…
Reducing injury and death
Starting with the obvious, effective health and safety training helps reduce injury and prevent site deaths. A government report from 2019 suggests that there were 79,000 construction workers with new or ongoing health issues related to their job. 62% of these were musculoskeletal, while 21% was anxiety, stress or depression related. Between 2018-19 there were 30 fatalities on construction sites. The most injuries came from falls from a high place, followed by being trapped, being hit by a mobile vehicle or object and electrocutions. These injuries can be prevented with effective training, provided all site workers are trained correctly and for their specific job.
Engaging employees and job satisfaction
All employees need the skills to do their jobs effectively to feel valued and appreciated; the construction sector is no different. Having enough health and safety knowledge means workersfeel equipped to do their job and confident on site, breeding job satisfaction. It’s important training isn’t a one size fits all approach – the skills needed may be pretty set in stone, but individuals learn differently. The construction sector needs to continue to adapt and offer flexible training.
Productivity and skilled workforce
Health and safety briefings and answering health and safety related questions can take up site time. With productivity repeatedly being mentioned as an issue for UK workforces, effective building site health and safety training can help keep morale and productivity high without the need for additional time addressing safety on site. Giving workers time away from site to concentrate solely on health and safety means they’re more likely to digest the information.
The construction skills shortage has also been an issue for some time – having workers effectively trained can also help ensure the workforce remains skilled. Better training can also attract workers into an industry. If behaviours and attitudes to safety and training are positive across the industry, this promotes construction as a responsible, attractive sector to work in.
Good ethics and responsibility
Companies have a duty of care towards their employees. At a time when things have been tough for construction firms, engaging in health and safety training shows responsibility. A company that cares about the safety and progression of its workforce is more likely to retain staff and have a good company culture. This in turn can help improve worker output.
To find out more about effective building site health and safety, please contact us or look at our construction health and safety courses.
