The Business Case for Health and Safety Training: How Investing in Workplace Training Can Save You Money
As a business owner or manager, you’ll know that protecting your employees at work is an important responsibility. Ethically and practically, it is your role to prevent workplace accidents and minimise risk to your workforce and members of the public wherever possible. However, investing in robust health and safety training programmes is also a sound business decision that can save you money and minimise legal risks to your organisation.
Getting your health and safety training right will reduce the risk of accidents and improve the wellbeing of your employees, which will also improve productivity throughout your workplace. Here, we’ll take a look at how it will also enable you to optimise your budget and protect the reputation of your business. At ASM, we understand that the quality of your health and safety training sustains your organisation and empowers you and your employees to take on new challenges with confidence.
Invest in Your Employees to Reduce Risk
Of course, as an employer, you want to minimise risk and protect the people who work for you. Naturally, however, you are also committed to introducing cost-effective practices wherever possible and optimising the efficiency of your organisation. Reducing workplace accidents is crucial for your reputation and your bottom line, and here’s why:
- You’ll save money. Workplace accidents can be costly in many ways, including the medical expenses incurred as a result of accidents and the compensation claims of your employees. It is also important to consider the indirect costs that go hand in hand with these, including loss of productivity, damage to equipment or tools and the overtime or cover costs required to replace an injured employee.
- You’ll empower your employees. Ensuring that your employees get the health and safety training they need can empower them to take on more responsibility in their roles, work more safely and increase their productivity at the same time. Reliable health and safety training will be tailored to your industry and your environment, ensuring that your workers understand safe practices, especially in high-risk areas or when using machinery, and are equipped to handle emergencies. Good training is also an investment in your staff, and this is excellent for morale and employee loyalty to your business.
- You’ll ensure continuity. Good quality training is extremely valuable to an organisation, enabling employees to work more consistently, which reduces wasted time and errors. Specialised training makes working with new equipment and technology safer and streamlines how your team works. This improves the culture in the workplace, and this is attractive to new employees, and it also ensures that you can maintain operational continuity even if some employees are absent due to illness or holidays.
- You’ll protect yourself and your business. If you have ever faced a legal enquiry or case that relates to an accident or injury in the workplace, or to harassment or discrimination, you’ll know how costly this can be. Cases such as this can run into millions, taking into account the need for settlements and legal fees, and it is also important to consider the damage to your reputation as a business which is likely to arise from such a case, as this can cause long-term, irreparable damage to your ability to attract new business and be seen as a credible organisation. Equipping your employees to carry out their work more safely and in line with regulations helps to ensure that they are informed about changing legal requirements and policies.
- You’ll improve your profit margins. Studies show that organisations offering top-quality training programmes have higher profit margins and bring in more income per employee than their competitors. This is likely due to a combination of the factors above, and also has the happy side effect that you will attract more ambitious, highly skilled employees to your organisation. Staff retention and turnover can represent a large cost in any industry. You will protect your business against this with a robust training programme that meets the needs of your employees to up-skill and continue their career development.
Our comprehensive training includes specialist training courses in areas such as working at height, confined spaces and working with chemicals, as well as first aid training, Safe Pass training and other courses. Some training courses, such as Safe Pass, are standardised and are crucial for those working in the construction industry, whereas other options can be tailored to suit your organisation and your industry and may even be delivered in your workplace by one of our expert safety consultants.
Health and Safety Compliance in Ireland
At ASM, our experienced team of Health and Safety experts is committed to driving up health and safety standards across Ireland, and we offer a wide range of health and safety training courses, many of which can be tailored to meet your unique requirements. We have been working with large and small organisations to improve health and safety standards across several industries for many years, and we can also provide Health and Safety Consultants and Safety Officers who can carry out essential safety audits, gap analysis, risk assessments and on-site training.
Aligning your business with the highest standards of health and safety will ensure that you build a reliable business that is protected, both practically and from a legal perspective, against unexpected costs and reputational damage. It is our priority to protect your employees and any members of the public who enter or use your workplace, as well as your workplace and your business itself. We will ensure that your organisation maintains compliance with all relevant legislation and enables you to meet and exceed your statutory responsibilities as an employer. Our Health and Safety Consultants in Ireland will be happy to discuss our training courses and services with you, so get in touch to find out more and give yourself the peace of mind you need to build your business.
