It’s your new employee’s first day, their first hour. They’re wondering what the new boss is like and you’re wondering what kind of employee they’ll be. Those first few hours and days on the job are full of first impressions. One thing is sure: the lessons they learn first are the lessons that stick.
New employee orientation shouldn’t be discretionary. It relieves “new employee stress,” makes new employees feel welcome and important, and helps create a team attitude. It also saves money and time while reducing turnover.
The key to helping every employee work as safely as possible, for their benefit and the benefit of those around them, is meaningful and consistent new employee safety orientation—meaningful because it’s relevant and it makes sense, and consistent in that every employee gets orientation in generally the same way and in the same time-frame.
Delivering your safety message first hour, first day to new employees is a constructive opportunity. It’s important to be the first voice every new employee hears articulating your organizational values, priorities, and goals. In addition, it helps ensure that every new employee starts out with a constructive, cooperative attitude toward workplace safety.
In some organizations, adequate safety orientation may only take an hour. In another it may be longer. Sometimes it only requires sitting down with the safety coordinator or a reliable veteran employee, and sometimes it’s crucial for the new employee to shadow a trusted mentor for a few days or weeks. However you choose to conduct safety orientation, the fact remains that the sooner and more clearly you deliver your message, the more likely it is to make a difference.
Organize Your Training
You know your organization and facility better than anyone. So what is important for every employee to know? First, think globally. Make sure everyone knows:
- That your company has a written Health & Safety Plan. Drive home that it’s in place for their benefit. It is the plumb-line by which their performance, and the company’s performance, is constantly measured.
- The Emergency Action Plan. How are emergencies signaled? Where are all the exits and what are the safest routes to get there? Where is the meeting area outside in case of a fire, and where is the refuge area inside in case of storms? Where are fire extinguishers and first aid cabinets and who are the trained responders?
- The nature of general hazards and how to recognize them. Explain what you are doing to identify and control the hazards specific to your operations and the personal measures that should be taken to prevent or minimize exposure to those hazards.
- Housekeeping, sanitation, material handling, electrical safety, and other horizontal OSHA standards. Horizontal standards are those regulations that affect everyone, in every environment, unlike vertical standards, which only affect those doing specific kinds of jobs, such as excavation or welding.
- How, when, and to whom to report incidents and accidents. Your workers’ compensation carrier needs to know about injuries as soon as possible after they happen, no matter how small. Make sure the incident reporting chain is clear and reporting happens seamlessly.
- General responsibilities. Every employee has them. Make sure the new employee understands theirs.
It’s best to have a systematic approach to orientation. Use a form that you can follow and that they can initial as itemized topics are completed and then sign at the end with their full signature. This is critical documentation that can provide some legal defense in circumstances such as OSHA citations or litigation.
Today’s Diverse Workforce
Before the new employee signs off that they have had orientation and training, make sure that they understand everything you’ve told them. This requires more than just asking, “Do you understand?” They don’t know what they don’t know, and none of us want to look foolish, so the natural reply would likely be, “Yes.” OSHA’s training requirements for different standards has a singular focus, that “regardless of the precise regulatory language, the terms ‘train’ and ‘instruct,’ … mean to present information in a manner that employees … are capable of understanding,” and it should happen before work begins.
Over time the workforce in every industry has become more diverse. Different industries are employing more workers with different backgrounds, languages (including those who speak little or no English), learning styles or abilities, and work experience. All of that has positives, but it also creates challenges.
You can’t anticipate every variable, but it’s important to know that not everyone is going to absorb information the same way or at the same pace. Be prepared to ramp it down a little or to bring in a reliable translator if necessary. You may need to use handouts, diagrams, or pictures. Often, pairing the new employee with a mentor is an effective way for them to learn. Some training topics may benefit from a post-test of 10 or 20 questions or even a demonstration of proficiency.
Orientation Tips
If you don’t have experience or feel confident as a trainer, or there isn’t an orientation process already in place, here are some tips to help establish or improve the process:
- Mail an orientation packet a few days before the new employee’s start date. It should include a welcome letter with a start date/time/place reminder and basic information and forms that they can complete ahead of time.
- Conduct the orientation in a relaxed manner and environment. It should be somewhere that is quiet, comfortable, allows for note taking, and where the new employee can focus on the training and ask questions when they need to. After a good walk-around of the area, go where you can have an uninterrupted and productive conversation. Some snacks and drinks are great relaxers.
- Introduce the new employee to key people and co-workers early on. The “people factor” is important and they shouldn’t have to mine that information themselves. They need to be comfortable asking questions, so they should know peoples’ names and already been introduced.
- Bring top management into the orientation at some point to introduce themselves, extend a personal and unambiguous welcome, and stress the importance of safety in your organization. The message: A culture of safety really does start from the top.
- Avoid the data dump. Don’t overwhelm new employees with too much information at once. Keep your presentation concise. Information retention can be low on the first day. Also, allow plenty of opportunities for questions.
- Take breaks. We all stop absorbing at some point. If there’s a lot to cover, spread it out so they have a better chance to absorb it.
- Keep communication open and flowing with new hires. Orientation is a process, not an event. Also, make it easy for them to give you feedback and to bring up safety concerns.
- Talk about injuries, but be careful. Emphasizing the costs of injuries can drive a point home because big dollar figures speak loudly to most people, but it can also have the opposite effect if it makes the employee feel like your profit line is more important than their safety. Always emphasize their value before you underscore your own.
Measure Your Success
After a new employee is on the job and safety orientation is a week or two behind them (and then again after six months), seek them out and ask about their experience so far, if your safety orientation was beneficial, and how it can be better. What helped and what didn’t? Was anything missed? Were other employees helpful?
Check your ego at the door. The conversation may be useful, but it won’t always be affirming. Be prepared to hear criticism and respond to it in a way that encourages your employees to offer genuine feedback.
Your new employee may be a seasoned technician or brand new to the workforce. In either case, and for everyone in between, they deserve a thorough and well thought out introduction to your organization, your culture, and your expectations. Take the time early and you’ll be glad you did.
