Recently, in safety and health management, we have noticed that there seems to be a gap forming between training being given to contractors and the expectations of those requiring contractors on site. There are so many problems with expectations not being met, now is a good time to address the issues we have experienced recently. From the perspective of an owner, there are particular training requirements that need to be met that have been established by stakeholders and management. Requiring specific training for contractors can have its advantages and disadvantages. Utilizing people that are already trained can have a financial benefit, but there tends to be a gap in what is trained and the expectation of training, as well as a lack of verification. For contractors there is a benefit to having trained personnel on hand that can meet the requirements of your clients. How do we assure that the training we provide as contractors is adequate for the tasks and to the client expectation? There is truly a division in what we think is expected of one another when talking about training and there are so many out there that claim to be trained, however may not be up to date in accordance with regulation. Diversified Technical Services is looking to bridge that gap and provide both owner and client with sufficient, verifiable training that meets regulatory and owner/contractor expectations. The following list is provided by OSHA and shows the top ten cited violations.

1.     Fall protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.501) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

2.     Hazard communication standard, general industry (29 CFR 1910.1200) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

3.     Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

4.     Respiratory protection, general industry (29 CFR 1910.134) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

5.     Control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout), general industry (29 CFR 1910.147) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

6.     Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

7.     Powered industrial trucks, general industry (29 CFR 1910.178) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

8.     Machinery and Machine Guarding, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.212) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

9.     Fall Protection–Training Requirements (29 CFR 1926.503) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

10. Electrical, wiring methods, components and equipment, general industry (29 CFR 1910.305) [related OSHA Safety and Health Topics page]

Are your people trained, can you verify that training, and can DTS assist you?