Safety induction

Whenever you hire new workers, it's important that you incorporate safety into their induction to the worksite – before they start their job. Not only will this help them understand how to do their work safely, it will let them know that you take safety seriously.

Use a checklist to make the induction easier and more thorough. Keep the checklist on file as a record of employee training.

Induction topics need to include:

• rights and responsibilities
• workplace hazards
• safe work procedures.

Rights and responsibilities

Everyone has a right to a safe workplace — and everyone has a role to play in keeping it safe. It's important that new workers understand what their rights and responsibilities are, as well as the rights and responsibilities of supervisors and employers.

Workplace hazards

Workers need to be aware of hazards so they can let you (or their supervisor) know if there are unsafe conditions that need to be fixed. It's important that you identify all hazards to workers — even if they seem obvious. Also, explain what systems or measures you've put in place to minimise the hazard.

Safe work procedures

There are probably tasks in your workplace that require specific safe work procedures — for example, locking machinery or picking up discarded needles. Workers must be trained in step-by-step safe work procedures. Don't just tell them the steps or have them read the instructions, make sure they understand how to do the task safely.