Over 200 people are killed each year in accidents at work and over one million people are injured. Over two million suffer illnesses caused by, or made worse by, their work.

As an employer you have a legal duty to protect the health and safety of your work force. Quite simply, if you wish to follow the letter of law you have no choice but to educate your staff through appropriate training methods. That being said, health and safety training should never be considered as just another law which you are legally obliged to adhere to. There are many good reasons why proper training can benefit both you and your staff.

Providing health and safety information and training helps you to:

• Ensure your employees are not injured or made ill by the work they do
• Develop a positive health and safety culture, where safe and healthy working becomes second nature to everyone
• Find out how you could manage health and safety better
• Meet your legal duty to protect the health and safety of your employees

Effective training:

• Will contribute towards making your employees competent in health and safety
• Can help your business avoid the distress that accidents and ill health cause
• Can help you avoid the financial costs of accidents and occupational ill health

No matter what sector you are employed in everybody should be given some form health and safety training that can be directly linked to your work environment and your daily duties. This relates to managers, supervisors and employees alike. Obviously, some jobs will require much more specialised training then others, in particular, those who work in the construction and manufacturing industries will most likely be at a greater risk of injury and will therefore need more attention. In general, things like first aid training and fire safety training are perhaps the most common types of courses that should be taught to all of your employees at some stage.