This regulation requires that each employee involved in operating a process and each employee before being involved in operating a newly assigned process shall be trained in an overview of the process and in the operating procedures. The regulation specifically requires training to emphasize the specific safety and health hazards, emergency operations including shutdown, and safe work practices applicable to the employee s job tasks. Hazard recognition is the key to effective safety programming. The training components of the cited standards and, in fact, all OSHA standards are designed to educate employees as to the potential hazards presented and arm them with the knowledge necessary to recognize those hazards in the daily performance of their jobs. While most employers provide basic training to meet the elemental requirements of the standard, such simple training often does not convey the importance of certain safety procedures or allow for a complete understanding of the process involved.
Many companies produce video training tapes that fulfill the basic elements of the standard.
However, these tapes can never address the differences and nuances of your operation. Include a walk-around, hands on element to your training. People get bored sitting in a classroom setting and consequently do not absorb information as well. To alleviate the boredom, incorporate a demonstration or role play scenario in the plant where the employee can put into practice what he just learned in the classroom. Provide an effective question and answer period.