Hazardous substances training – What you need to consider when organising and carrying out the training

29. July 2024 | Author: Emily Heinig | Reading time: 6 min

In many companies, handling hazardous substances is part of everyday work, whether in production, storage, or disposal. The highest priority is to ensure the safety of employees and the environment. The employer must inform the employees about the dangers and protective measures when handling hazardous substances. To do this, a hazardous substance training course must be scheduled.

In our article, you will learn which companies must carry out such training, which aspects should be considered, and how to conduct successful hazardous substances training. If you would like to read more about digital hazardous substances management, we recommend our free e-book!

Please note: This text refers to German laws and regulations. They may differ in other countries.

What are hazardous substances?

Before planning a hazardous substance training course, the term “hazardous substance” should first be defined. This refers to substances, preparations and products that have dangerous properties. There are currently 28 classes of hazardous substances, which can be divided into three main groups. These are based on the dangers posed by the substances and are:

Pictograms are used to mark hazardous substances. Signal words, hazard statements, and safety instructions are also used. These are laid down by law to ensure universal comprehensibility.

Which companies require hazardous substances training?

Are hazardous substances used in your company? If your company?

If your company…

• stores
• manufactures
• uses
• transports
• or disposes

…hazardous substances, employees must be trained annually.

Before the instruction: Operating instructions for hazardous substances

Before planning hazardous substance training, you must determine the available operating instructions. These are intended to point out dangers and to show the corresponding protective measures. Operating instructions should be kept short and compact for the sake of comprehensibility. The following instructions are particularly recommended:

• information on hazardous substances present or arising in the workplace (e.g. name, labelling, hazards)
• information on appropriate precautionary actions (e.g. hygiene rules, prevention of exposure, personal protective equipment)
• information on measures to be taken in the event of operational disruptions, accidents or emergencies

It is crucial that the document be in written form. It is not relevant whether you provide it to your employees on paper or electronically. However, a digital version is recommended, especially because your employees can access the documents regardless of location and time (e.g., via their smartphone). Operating instructions for hazardous substances can be accessed, and accidental loss is prevented.

In addition, the operating instructions must be updated whenever there is a significant change in working conditions. Employees must also have access to safety information and be informed about the methods and procedures.

However, in addition to the established operating instructions, it may also be necessary to discuss specific topics that go beyond the instructions’ content. These may include evaluations of (near) accidents involving hazardous substances or restrictions on use for certain groups of people (e.g., expectant or breastfeeding mothers).

Tipp:

Hazard assessment is suitable as a basis for preparing a hazardous substances instruction and the associated operational instruction. It helps identify hazards and provides an overview of essential aspects to include in the training.

Structure and content of a hazardous substances training course

A key point of the hazardous substances training is explaining the hazardous substances list, including access options. This list lists all hazardous substances used in the company, as well as their dangerous properties and associated risks. All employees should know where they can get access to the list and how it is structured.

Furthermore, you must clarify aspects of the hazardous substances training that have already been explained in this article: Which substances and mixtures are considered hazardous? How are they divided into hazardous substance classes? What dangers do these substances pose to the human body and, therefore, to your employees? These questions should, of course, be answered concerning your own company.

Based on their specific activities, you must explain to employees the rules of conduct to prevent accidents and appropriate first aid measures. This also includes correctly using the required personal protective equipment (PPE) if necessary.

There are no rules as to how this check is carried out. You can conduct an oral survey, require a practical application, or even take a written test. If you choose the latter, a software solution with the option of creating tests is a good option. This allows you to keep an eye on the results of all employees and systematically close any gaps in knowledge.

Tips for successful hazardous substances training

With any type of training, boring content can be difficult for employees to absorb. Particular emphasis should be placed on ensuring a correct understanding of hazardous substances. If content is not conveyed in an understandable way, this increases the risk for your employees.

For this reason, we have compiled a list of tips on conducting a successful hazardous substances training session.

• Start with easy topics, then work up to more complex issues. This will keep the participants’ attention.
• Use understandable language. Foreign words and legal texts only confuse.
• Use practical examples to clarify the content.
• Also, discuss past incidents so that important rules are remembered. Of course, these do not have to have happened in your company.

Support through digital solutions

The law stipulates that instruction must be given orally. Nevertheless, there are tasks in the area of hazardous substance instruction for which the use of software is suitable. Our occupational safety software iManSys is designed to support you with most tasks in the context of hazardous substance instruction.

Start by creating a hazard assessment or setting up a company-specific hazardous substance management system, which can be accessed at any time in our software. In the modules of our “Risks & Hazards” software world, employees can record dangerous situations, providing you with a basis for future training.

The hazardous substances training cannot occur in a digital system – but the subsequent knowledge check can. Here, too, iManSys offers a precise tool in which you can carry out tests to check understanding.

Have we piqued your interest? Then find out more about our software and ensure greater security in your company!