Have Your Team Renew their OSHA Training

Why should you have trained workers renew their OSHA training this year? Here’s what you should know.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has been setting workplace safety standards since 1971. OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 are voluntary training programs for entry-level workers and higher-level workers/managers, respectively, that are targeted to specific industries. These include General, Construction, and Maritime and are focused on topics that are relevant to each industry. But do OSHA 10 and OSHA 30 expire?

Expiration Considerations

Maritime OSHA 10 training is valid for just five years, after which it must be renewed. If you are in the maritime industry, you must make sure that your employees’ training does not lapse. No other OSHA 10 or OSHA 30 training expires, so there are no concerns about validity.

Reasons to Renew OSHA Training

Just because most OSHA training does not expire doesn’t mean that it shouldn’t be renewed. Fresh OSHA training is one of the strongest tools employees have to protect themselves from workplace hazards. The more dangerous the machinery or conditions are at your worksite, the more urgent it is for employees to receive regular OSHA training, but even relatively safe workplaces have been the site of industrial accidents. Here are a few reasons that experts recommend updating OSHA 10 yearly and OSHA 30 every few years:

• Updates: OSHA requirements and best practices are regularly updated. Frequent training ensures that your team has all the latest information.
• Safety Habits: In the day to day work environment, it’s easy for employees to forget some things they learned, or start to let safety practices slide. Regular training classes help team members form good safety habits that can become second nature.
  
• Protecting Others: Sometimes, employees are willing to take risks with their own safety, but they may not realize that their actions can endanger their coworkers. Ongoing safety training can help employees recognize that the things they do have real consequences not only for themselves, but also for those around them.

Online classes from a variety of sources are easy to find for both OSHA 10 and OSHA 30. Quick and inexpensive, these are a great way to make sure your employees are as safe as possible. So why not commit to ensuring that your entire team renews their OSHA training this year?

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