Safety and Training Should Be Conversations that Take Place Every Day

RCS Influencer Jon Stantz says that it’s important to continually talk with workers about safety.

The how, what and why on training at Pell Roofing and Siding is pretty basic. Job safety is first and foremost, and we hold weekly discussions about literally everything we face daily. Driving to the job site, setting up the project, customer safety, OSHA inspections, equipment use are all items we deal with.

Driving home the need for better inspection of workplace hazards is sometimes difficult as we all get in too big of a hurry to get work done. I guess my biggest concern is personal protection devices such as fall arrestors, safety glasses and ear plugs. Getting everyone on the same page can be frustrating as new employees think that they can't get hurt. This can cause some serious issues as they don't understand the ramifications of workmen's comp insurance expenses and the cost to all when someone gets hurt, let alone the injury itself.

I will say that we have been very successful with our fall prevention especially on flat roofs. Teaching our workers the limits when working the edges of a commercial building is especially important as most accidents happen there. We have our new hires go through a safety presentation with videos and formal personal instruction but getting them to utilize all this information can be challenging at times though.

It's just part of the daily grind - you have to continually talk and show them the proper methods, whether it's installation of product or safety.

Jon Stantz is a supervisor, salesperson and repairman for Pell Roofing and Siding in Brazil, Indiana. See his full bio here.