Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training

Richard Skiba

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training

Richard Skiba

Published in International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research (Volume 6, Issue 2)

Received: 22 June 2020 Accepted: 7 July 2020 Published: 17 July 2020

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Abstract

Effective health and safety training can contribute to a reduction of workplace accidents and assist employers to meet their health and safety legal obligations as prescribed by health and safety legislation. This paper considers the competency requirements for trainers of health and safety within the Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) context from a standards perspective. Currently, there are not specific specified requirements for these trainers, but rather generic requirements that apply to all trainers in the VET sector. An interpretive qualitative method utilizing observations based on a review of a range of sources, including published research, standards documents, general internet sources and industry publications is applied such that the health and safety training practices and environments in the VET sector are explored and described. Health and safety training, in order to be effective, warrants careful attention to the training environment, the training practices implemented and the skills and knowledge of the trainer. The role of standards for health and safety training, with ANSI/ASSE Z490.1-2016 and CAN/CSA Z1001-18b provided as examples, is considered and a these standards provide a basis for a proposed standardization for health and safety training practitioners in the Australian VET system. The findings offer inclusion of a specific training and assessment unit of competency in the TAE Training and Education Training Package to address the specific requirements for safety trainers, which then be used as a benchmark in the VET sector and by employers and industry. The paper, in conclusion, posits that inconsistent training practices and trainer qualifications could be minimized by utilizing a national, consensus-based standard on the training practices in health and safety training, which can be achieved through a competency specification.

Published in	International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research (Volume 6, Issue 2)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11
Page(s)	22-28
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Health and Safety, Vocational Education and Training, Trainer Competence, Training Practices, Adult Learning

References

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[8]	Townsell, J. (2012a). Who Needs This Training? (Hint: Not Everyone). Retrieved from https://www.ehstoday.com/ehs-outloud-blog/article/21915243/who-needs-this-training-hint-not-everyone.
[9]	Cekada, T. L. (2010). Training Needs Assessment: Understanding what employees need to know. Professional Safety, March, 28-33.
[10]	Dunn, C. K. (2015). Audience Analysis: Taking Employees from Awareness to Understanding. Professional Safety, November, 30-34.
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[16]	McLeod, S. (2017). Kolb's Learning Styles and Experiential Learning Cycle. Retrieved from https://www.simplypsychology.org/learning-kolb.html.
[17]	Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development (Vol. 1). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
[18]	Stuart, A. (2014). A blended learning approach to safety training: Student experiences of safe work practices and safety culture. Safety Science 62, 409-417. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssci.2013.10.005.
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Richard Skiba. (2020). Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training. International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research, 6(2), 22-28. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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ACS Style

Richard Skiba. Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training. Int. J. Vocat. Educ. Train. Res. 2020, 6(2), 22-28. doi: 10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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AMA Style

Richard Skiba. Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training. Int J Vocat Educ Train Res. 2020;6(2):22-28. doi: 10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11,
  author = {Richard Skiba},
  title = {Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training},
  journal = {International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research},
  volume = {6},
  number = {2},
  pages = {22-28},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijvetr.20200602.11},
  abstract = {Effective health and safety training can contribute to a reduction of workplace accidents and assist employers to meet their health and safety legal obligations as prescribed by health and safety legislation. This paper considers the competency requirements for trainers of health and safety within the Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) context from a standards perspective. Currently, there are not specific specified requirements for these trainers, but rather generic requirements that apply to all trainers in the VET sector. An interpretive qualitative method utilizing observations based on a review of a range of sources, including published research, standards documents, general internet sources and industry publications is applied such that the health and safety training practices and environments in the VET sector are explored and described. Health and safety training, in order to be effective, warrants careful attention to the training environment, the training practices implemented and the skills and knowledge of the trainer. The role of standards for health and safety training, with ANSI/ASSE Z490.1-2016 and CAN/CSA Z1001-18b provided as examples, is considered and a these standards provide a basis for a proposed standardization for health and safety training practitioners in the Australian VET system. The findings offer inclusion of a specific training and assessment unit of competency in the TAE Training and Education Training Package to address the specific requirements for safety trainers, which then be used as a benchmark in the VET sector and by employers and industry. The paper, in conclusion, posits that inconsistent training practices and trainer qualifications could be minimized by utilizing a national, consensus-based standard on the training practices in health and safety training, which can be achieved through a competency specification.},
 year = {2020}
}

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N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11
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JO  - International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research
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Author Information

Richard Skiba

LRES Training Management, Melbourne, Australia

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Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Richard Skiba. (2020). Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training. International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research, 6(2), 22-28. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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ACS Style

Richard Skiba. Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training. Int. J. Vocat. Educ. Train. Res. 2020, 6(2), 22-28. doi: 10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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AMA Style

Richard Skiba. Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training. Int J Vocat Educ Train Res. 2020;6(2):22-28. doi: 10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11

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@article{10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11,
  author = {Richard Skiba},
  title = {Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training},
  journal = {International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research},
  volume = {6},
  number = {2},
  pages = {22-28},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijvetr.20200602.11},
  abstract = {Effective health and safety training can contribute to a reduction of workplace accidents and assist employers to meet their health and safety legal obligations as prescribed by health and safety legislation. This paper considers the competency requirements for trainers of health and safety within the Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) context from a standards perspective. Currently, there are not specific specified requirements for these trainers, but rather generic requirements that apply to all trainers in the VET sector. An interpretive qualitative method utilizing observations based on a review of a range of sources, including published research, standards documents, general internet sources and industry publications is applied such that the health and safety training practices and environments in the VET sector are explored and described. Health and safety training, in order to be effective, warrants careful attention to the training environment, the training practices implemented and the skills and knowledge of the trainer. The role of standards for health and safety training, with ANSI/ASSE Z490.1-2016 and CAN/CSA Z1001-18b provided as examples, is considered and a these standards provide a basis for a proposed standardization for health and safety training practitioners in the Australian VET system. The findings offer inclusion of a specific training and assessment unit of competency in the TAE Training and Education Training Package to address the specific requirements for safety trainers, which then be used as a benchmark in the VET sector and by employers and industry. The paper, in conclusion, posits that inconsistent training practices and trainer qualifications could be minimized by utilizing a national, consensus-based standard on the training practices in health and safety training, which can be achieved through a competency specification.},
 year = {2020}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Characteristics of Effective Health and Safety Training Environments and Trainers in Australian Vocational Education and Training
AU  - Richard Skiba
Y1  - 2020/07/17
PY  - 2020
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11
T2  - International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research
JF  - International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research
JO  - International Journal of Vocational Education and Training Research
SP  - 22
EP  - 28
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2469-8199
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijvetr.20200602.11
AB  - Effective health and safety training can contribute to a reduction of workplace accidents and assist employers to meet their health and safety legal obligations as prescribed by health and safety legislation. This paper considers the competency requirements for trainers of health and safety within the Australian Vocational Education and Training (VET) context from a standards perspective. Currently, there are not specific specified requirements for these trainers, but rather generic requirements that apply to all trainers in the VET sector. An interpretive qualitative method utilizing observations based on a review of a range of sources, including published research, standards documents, general internet sources and industry publications is applied such that the health and safety training practices and environments in the VET sector are explored and described. Health and safety training, in order to be effective, warrants careful attention to the training environment, the training practices implemented and the skills and knowledge of the trainer. The role of standards for health and safety training, with ANSI/ASSE Z490.1-2016 and CAN/CSA Z1001-18b provided as examples, is considered and a these standards provide a basis for a proposed standardization for health and safety training practitioners in the Australian VET system. The findings offer inclusion of a specific training and assessment unit of competency in the TAE Training and Education Training Package to address the specific requirements for safety trainers, which then be used as a benchmark in the VET sector and by employers and industry. The paper, in conclusion, posits that inconsistent training practices and trainer qualifications could be minimized by utilizing a national, consensus-based standard on the training practices in health and safety training, which can be achieved through a competency specification.
VL  - 6
IS  - 2
ER  -

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