For best practices in training this issue, we looked to some of the nominees for the 2020 Safety Innovator Award. The 2020 Safety Innovator Award winner, Kingfisher Boats, interviewed on page 6, was joined in this category by many other forward-thinking nominees, including these three OSSE-certified companies.

1. “SAFETY ON THE SPOT.” Spot-quizzes and prizes keep workers engaged and interested in training—and help gauge how much employees remember. Maureen Johnson, Mauser Packaging Solutions Safety Coordinator, explains, “To ensure safety information is understood, we do random ‘safety on the spot’ challenges throughout the week after a safety training to quiz on the topics discussed, awarding small safety prizes.”
2. AUTO-REMINDERS. At Termel Industries in North Vancouver, automation helps keeps everyone on track. When a safety certification is within three months of expiring, a message is sent to the HSE/OHS manager. This provides ample time to organize retraining so that expiring training or training gaps are a non-issue.
3. GRANT FUNDING. Government funding can help make safety training affordable, particularly for small to midsize organizations. “Knight Signs is actively using the Canada Jobs Grant [now called the BC Employer Training Grant program] to fund safety training such as first aid, fall protection training, elevated platforms, etc.,” notes HR Admin/Executive Assistant Natalia Kouznetsova.