SAFE Work Certified- Training Standard

Worker Participation in Safety and Health Certification

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Worker Participation in Safety and Health Certification

1. Scope

The SAFE Work Certified Standards and Procedures require certifying partners to offer four essential courses to employers and/or the workplace worker safety representative:

  • Principles of Safety and Health Management
  • Safety and Health Leadership
  • Auditing for Certification (Maintenance Auditors)
  • Worker Participation in Safety and Health Certification

To be authorized as a certifying partner, industry-based safety programs and/or associations (IBSPs) must meet the training standards for each of these courses.

The training standards should be read in conjunction with applicable safety and health legislation, the SAFE Work Certified Standards and Procedures and the SAFE Work Certified Audit Framework.

The format and structure of the training may vary and be customized by the certifying partners to address the specific needs of their industry. The certifying partners need to effectively demonstrate the requirements outlined in the SAFE Work Certified Standards and Procedures and the SAFE Work Certified Audit Framework and achieve the learning outcomes outlined in the standard.

The Worker Participation in Safety and Health Certification course may be offered as stand-alone module or may be included in the Safety Committee/Safety Representative training.

2. Purpose

The Worker Participation in Safety and Health Certification course is to provide the workplace committee worker co-chair or worker safety and health representative with an understanding of what safety and health certification is and their roles in certification audit activities. It is designed to clarify the need for the workplace committee worker co-chair or worker safety and health representative sign-off on the certification audit and to provide input into the action plan arising from the audit.

The training is intended for:

  • workplace committee worker co-chairs
  • worker safety and health representatives.

3. Design

The training program must meet the following criteria:

  • Compliance with adult learning principles:
  • Ensure learners know why they need to learn specific content, its relevance to them and their workplaces.
  • Relate learning to training participants’ own experience in situations that simulate actual application in the workplace.
  • Challenge and/or engage training participants using a variety of activities that allow opportunity for participation, feedback and interaction.
  • recognize limits of attention span and apply techniques to address the various ways that adults learn
  • use realistic activities and tools to support transfer of learning to the workplace.
  • Language and literacy level appropriate for learners.
  • Content that is accurate and current, and also references and verifies all legal and technical information.
  • Uses a variety of teaching aids such as audio-visuals, manuals, case-studies, as well as oral and written exercises.
  • Content that is tied to the services and support offered by the certifying partner.
  • Consistency with the provincial and federal legal requirements, SAFE Work Certified Standards and Guidelinesand SAFE Work Certified Audit Framework.

4. Delivery

The training program must meet the following criteria:

  • In-class, instructor-led training.
  • Where in-class training is not possible, at the determination of the certifying partner, on-line training or blended training may be provided which is consistent with Manitoba e-Learning Instructional Design Guidelines.

5. Learning Outcomes

5.1 Safety and Health Certification

Content includes:

  • an overview of the certification program, its requirements and audit process.

At the end of this module learners will be able to:

  • understand what the certification program is and recognize the foundational principles on which it is built.
  • identify the three safety essentials that workplaces are required to demonstrate within their safety and health programs for certification: leadership commitment, hazard identification and risk control, and worker participation
  • describe the steps for a certification audit.

5.2 Worker Role in Certification

Content includes:

  • an overview of the worker's role in the certification process specific to the independent audit sign off and input into action plan.

At the end of this module learners will be able to:

  • Articulate how their roles as worker co-chairs for their workplace safety and health committees and/or as worker safety and health representatives, includes them:
  • having access to safety and health information
  • supporting transparency and sharing information with their committees and/or other workers
  • Understanding that their participation in the certification process is an extension of these roles.
  • Articulate that their purpose in signing the audit is to confirm that the audit content has been reviewed, that the audit process has been explained, and that there has been an opportunity to ask questions.
  • Articulate that the purpose of having input into the action plan is to ensure their participation in the certification process and support their right to participate in workplace safety and health.
  • Understand that their signature on the audit and their input into an action plan does not mean they are legally liable, agree with the findings, or are accountable and/or responsible for the safety and health program or carrying out the action plan.
  • Understand that any concerns they may have regarding the workplace safety and health certification, audit results or audit process should be raised with the certifying partner and/or SAFE Work Manitoba.

6. Resource Material

Resource materials should include:

  • copies of the applicable provincial or federal safety legislation, as applicable
  • definitions and/or glossary
  • sample audit and action plan
  • frequently asked questions (FAQ) about employees' role in safety and health certification.

7. Trainer Qualifications

Trainers must have:

  • experience delivering training, as well as knowledge of adult education principles
  • knowledge, training and competency relevant to the subject matter.

8. Evaluation

Evaluation of the training includes consideration of:

  • Reaction - An evaluation form will be provided to participants for their reaction, feedback and suggestions regarding the course content and instructor delivery.
  • Learning - The training program will include methods to evaluate the participant's immediate learning using a variety of evaluation methods available to the instructor and/or evaluator, which are appropriate to the learning outcomes including:
  • open discussion
  • group discussion
  • questions and answers
  • where applicable, written and/or oral tests.
  • Behaviour - Learning will be further evaluated based on how the learning is applied in the development of the safety and health program and through the audit.
  • Results - The training program will be reviewed and updated as part of the certifying partner's own quality assurance programming and in the context of the certifying partner's goals.

9. Validation / Refresher Requirements

Refresher training may be recommended following an audit and/or as part of an audit action plan. The certifying partner may recommend refresher training based on an employer's specific situation/needs.

SWC-015 - 01/2018