More than likely you’ve heard the word “HIPAA” but still don’t fully understand what it is and why it’s such a big deal. HIPAA is the acronym for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act established in 1996.

In basic terms, it requires your organization and employees to keep all information about your patients confidential, regardless of the medium including paper, oral, or electronic device.

For starters, HIPAA consists of five different titles, each playing a distinct role in the overall protection of someone’s personal information.

Title 1 – This title is what regulates the availability and access to healthcare plans, as well as the renewability and portability of coverage. In other words, for someone with a pre-existing condition, this title regulates the way group insurance plans handle him or her.

Title II – Included as part of this title is the Privacy Rule, which regulates the ways you can share Protected Health Insurance or PHI with various covered entities such as healthcare clearinghouses and insurers.

Title III – Title III of HIPAA is what standardizes the amount of money a person can save for a medical savings account.

Title IV – The focus of this title is on the application and enforcement of group health plans.

Title V – For patients with life insurance premiums, this title regulates the tax deductions.

Although your HR Director needs proper training on all five Titles of HIPAA, you want him or her to pay special attention to Title II since it is something organizations associated with healthcare deal with often.

This title requires the person in your organization who oversees HIPAA to complete specific training. With this, he or she can protect data connected to 18 unique identifiers. Otherwise, an unauthorized party could determine who the information belongs to, which under this Act, should never happen.

Dates (birth date, termination date, hire date, date of death)

Beneficiary number for a health insurance plan

Biometric identifiers (retinal scans, fingerprints, voice, etc.)

Photograph(s) (extending beyond just the face)

Any other distinct characteristic, code, or number that would reveal a patient’s identification)

As explained by the US Department of Health and Human Services, “the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) required the Secretary of the US  Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop regulations to protect the privacy and security of certain health information.

If you operate a business in the healthcare sector, whether physical or mental, the law mandates you follow all titles, especially Title II.

HHS goes on to state before the enactment of HIPAA, there were virtually no set standards for the security of information nor were there any general requirements for protecting information on an individual’s health within the healthcare sector.

However, with advanced technology making it increasingly easy to obtain someone’s information, the government recognized the need to do something to change that in the form of HIPAA.

HIPPA training is not limited to just healthcare organizations. Any Business Associate (BA) or entity that requests, handles, and stores patient or client information must complete specific certification courses. Without proper training, there’s no way for your HR Director, Compliance Manager, L&D Manager, and others as you deem necessary, to successfully protect information about your patients.

As for Business Associates (BAs), the government defines these as any individual or business with access to a patient’s protected health information. Some examples include accountants, lawyers, and third-party insurance billing services.

While the government mandates certain HIPAA training, there are areas where training is not required. Even so, for optimum protection of the patients and clients your organization provides services to, you should have the appropriate leadership team take as many online courses possible while maintaining an emphasis on those pertaining to Title II.

If a breach of PHI compliance occurs, government officials would open a formal investigation. During that period, if they discover you failed to provide the appropriate people within your organization the training required, you would likely receive a significant fine from the Office for Civil Rights.

Furthermore, failure to comply would put your business at a tremendous risk for any involved patient or client to file a lawsuit against your company.

Keep in mind, the HIPAA training your staff needs and the courses you recommend will vary somewhat according to each of their positions and the specific functions they perform. Typically, companies that deal with sensitive and proprietary healthcare information complete multiple training courses to ensure managers understand all angles of security awareness.

Fortunately, many of the courses are available online through a reputable Learning Management System (LMS). Although an industry or topic expert develops each course, the majority only take about an hour to complete. These courses are also affordable and available in a variety of formats, including articles, podcasts, videos, and so on.

Between the mandated and selective training, there’s a tremendous amount of information. However, with an LMS, your staff can complete courses within a reasonable period, preventing them from trying to cram their minds with more information than they can retain.

After all, even mandated HIPAA training has no set timeframe, although the government expects organizations to complete it as quickly as possible to ensure compliance.

If you look under the Security Rule of HIPAA, you would see it requires training “periodically,” meaning there’s no set timeline. A good rule to follow is to have the correct members of your organization complete mandated training once a year. As for supplemental training, they could coordinate courses with their schedules. Of course, any changes to HIPAA would prompt immediate action.

The Compliance Manager within your organization plays a key role in keeping your L&D Manager up-to-speed on any HIPPA training issues. In this role, the individual responsible for compliance should perform several duties, including:

Monitoring – Monitor both the HHS website and various state publications for rule changes. Although HHS provides an advanced notice, it never hurts to have your Compliance Manager subscribe to several viable channels and news feeds.

Assessment – Whenever the HHS issues new guidelines or rules, your Compliance Manager should conduct a thorough risk assessment. With that, he or she can determine if the modifications impact your business.

 If it does, your Compliance Manager should work with your L&D Manager to ensure the proper people complete any necessary training, both mandated and supplemental. Beyond an assessment following changes to HIPAA, it’s essential to have your Compliance Manager conduct additional risk assessments regularly. That way, the risk of your organization to have a HIPPA violation decreases dramatically.


Liaison – If changes occurred, your Compliance Manager needs to schedule a meeting with the L&D and HR Managers. Together, they can identify any impact relating to compliance with Title II of HIPAA.

Training – If HIPAA changes impact your employees’ compliance, your L&D manager would organize the necessary training. Remember, only members of your organization affected by modifications to HIPAA must complete the mandated training.

The government mandates specific HIPAA training, including the Administrative Safeguard of the HIPAA Security Rule and the Administrative Requirement of the HIPAA Privacy Rule. Along with those two, consider several supportive training courses for each of the four remaining titles, as well as others such as Information Security and Privacy and Compliance: Privacy Awareness. The more knowledge your executives and senior management team has the better.

These two mandated courses cover a lot of valuable information. Following are some examples:

HHS provides templates for the various HIPAA topics, making it easy for you to stay on top of training, compliance issues, and other concerns. If you have a healthcare organization, you must explain HIPAA laws to patients and provide them with a HIPAA statement that clearly outlines their rights. You should do both of these before a person actually sees a physical or mental healthcare professional.

If you run a BA or entity, meaning you don’t actually see patients but still deal with personal information, again, you need to let your clients know about HIPAA. The best way to prevent an oversight is by establishing a privacy policy reflecting the Privacy Rule.

Whether an existing or new patient, make sure you have a check and balance system guaranteeing you provide everyone with both oral and written information. Then, have the patient sign the paper, followed by keeping a copy in his or her file and storing a digital copy.

If you have an insurance assistance, billing, or some other type of company that deals with patient information, adopt the same kind of system. The goal is to cover your back, ensuring your organization is 100 percent compliant and therefore, not at risk for a breach.

Along with this system, you could create a simple Excel spreadsheet listing the mandated training courses. Include a column for the team member’s name and the date of completion. For each person, you would then list secondary training on patient privacy courses. With this, you have control of HHS and your internal training program.

One important thing to note, if you anticipate sharing a patient’s Protected Health Information (PHI) with a third-party, you’re required to seek permission first. If granted, the patient needs to sign a form either created by you or one provided by HHS, which you then maintain as part of your record keeping system. If at any time a patient requests a copy of the signed document, you’re required to provide one.

Something else you need to know is if you have a counseling, therapy, or psychiatry business, under HIPAA, you’re not required to share mental health notes. In other words, you can share names, addresses, and various other patient details to a third-party but personal psychotherapy notes are off limit. What is comes down to is you and your staff must protect the security and privacy of every person seen.

The only exception is if for some reason you have a genuine concern a patient may harm him or herself, or someone else, you can contact family members or law enforcement. In such an event, you would need to make a relatively fast assessment, followed by taking the appropriate action to keep your client safe.

As mentioned, along with mandated training, it’s highly recommended you provide your leadership team with supplemental courses.

For both, consider some of the primary do’s and don’ts:

Do – Choose online courses of real value.

Don’t – Go into great detail about HIPAA’s history. While perhaps interesting to some individuals, most people really don’t care.

Do – Select supplemental online training courses your staff can complete in an hour or less.

Don’t – Make training boring. There’s no reason to provide codes and quotes from HHS. If you plan to have your leadership team complete training on the same day and at the same location, have your L&D Manager prepare an engaging presentation.

Do – Cover the different consequences of being in breach of HIPPA. For this, you need to send a clear message about the damage this would have not only on the organization but also employees and most importantly, patients.

Don’t – Overlook the importance of documenting all training provided and completed.

Do – Choose the right members of your team for training. The three most critical people include your HR Manager, Compliance Manager, and L&D Manager.

For the best HIPAA training, go through the US Department of Health and Human Services website. However, for additional training, make sure you choose a trusted, respected, and reliable source.

While you’ll have no problem finding an LMS, not all offer the same caliber of service. Go1 is by far your best option. With a vast library of courses on patient privacy and an affordable membership price, you can access whatever training you feel your team needs to complete in support of HIPAA training.

Although HIPAA training protects patients and clients, it also protects your business and the people who work for it. Enforce the completion of mandated courses and select supplemental training for optimum protection. The last thing you want is to have the government breathing down your back about a potential non-compliant issue. We invite you to visit our website or call to speak with a representative.

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All you need to know about HIPAA training

For banks, insurance companies, brokerage firms, and other businesses engaged in financial activities, there are many complex requirements when it comes to compliance.

While all businesses need to be compliant with industry regulations, companies involved in financial services must be particularly aware of compliance concerns.

Neglecting compliance issues can put these companies at significant risk, in the way of penalties and fines, legal proceedings, loss of income, as well as damage to their brand and reputation.

Tony Clark, Managing Director at Synechron UK, believes compliance is “not just about recognising the key regulatory pressures facing financial institutions, but also proactively ensuring the company is improving its processes and streamlining its operations.”

Understanding potential compliance and regulatory challenges is your first step in successfully addressing them.

To help you do this, here are three of the biggest compliance concerns in the financial realm and what you can do to avoid them.

Data Breaches – Secure Your Company Data       

Top of the list for compliance concerns for financial services? Data breaches.

Earlier this year,­­­ we saw some very important changes around data breaches enacted into law on 22 February 2018. Since the passing of the Privacy Amendment (Notifiable Data Breaches) Bill 2016 in Parliament, companies no longer have the luxury of hiding their breaches.

These changes have been made to increase the level of security for individuals, protecting customer data that companies have access to. Organisations will now have to prove that they are taking this issue seriously. And businesses that fail to show they have the right compliance measures in place – or are at least making efforts to – will face serious fines, with civil penalties of up to $1.8 million.

To minimise this risk, make sure you’re educating staff about data security and compliance. Investing some time and money in compliance training is worth the investment, to make sure your business is safeguarding against the event of a data breach.

Companies must notify both the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) and affected individuals of any eligible data breaches. This will give individuals the opportunity to re-secure or change their data, while also putting pressure on organisations to improve their data security practices in the first place.

Cyber Attacks – Protect Against Ransomware

Unfortunately, financial institutions are key targets for cyber attacks, due to the vast amount of sensitive (and valuable) data they possess.

Over the last twelve months, we’ve seen various countries across the world affected by major cyber attacks involving ransomware. Petya, a malicious computer virus, recently wreaked havoc on more than 200,000 organisations in over 150 countries, for example.

It’s imperative that financial service companies implement effective security programs and policies to keep these threats at bay.

Training staff around this issue and increasing your cyber security is your best line of defense. You can learn more about the precautions you can take to protect yourself and your business from malicious ransomware and the risk of cyber attack here.

Workplace Safety – Keeping Employees Safe

Compliance is also critical when it comes to the human side of things – your employees.

Employees are “one of the most important elements of every business and because they bring with them a host of legal obligations.”

Companies face considerable fines and business impacts if they fail to be compliant with current workplace safety laws and regulations. That’s why employers must provide appropriate workplace safety training for all staff and take responsibility for providing them with a safe workplace.

It’s also important to look at the policies you have in place around sexual harassment, bullying and all forms of discrimination. Employees have a legal right to live and work free from harassment and discrimination based on gender, age, race, religion or sexual orientation. Make sure you have strong policies in place around these subjects, and that you’re providing ongoing employee training to remind staff of these key messages.

Using eLearning to Reduce Compliance Risk

If you’re looking to update and improve the compliance processes within your organisation, moving your training online is a great place to start.

Through eLearning platforms, you can use “simulations, quizzes, stories, gamification, role-play, audio, video, and almost any other multimedia you can think of! That’s a whole load of ways to take students through the complicated maze of compliance.”

Using a Learning Management System such as Go1’s online training platform to create and deliver your compliance training gives you access to customisable reporting, engagement tools and analytics.

This allows you to easily track staff progress, see how each team member is going with the content and whether they may need additional direction, assistance or further resources. You can even use your own compliance content with the Go1 platform, creating a fully customised program for your employees.

For companies involved in financial services, investing some time and money into this area is the best way to significantly reduce your compliance risk. There are plenty of compliance training courses available online, if you’d like to learn more about this important issue.

Step up your compliance training with Go1

What are the top compliance concerns for financial services?

In the event of a workplace emergency, would your staff know how to respond?

Natural disasters, fires, evacuations, workplace accidents – these things can and do happen, even in industries that are considered to be low risk.

It’s really important that employers ensure staff know how to respond in the event of an emergency or first aid incident. You can help your employees feel more prepared by providing regular workplace training in these areas.

By complying with national first aid code of practice, and ensuring you have qualified, trained first aiders on hand, you can significantly reduce the impact of incidents at your workplace.  You’ll also be helping individual employees to develop the skills – and confidence – they need to make the right decisions in the event of a workplace emergency.

First Aid Training – Your Responsibility as an Employer

If you run a company or organisation, it’s important that your business is compliant with current workplace safety laws and regulations, to promote a safer workplace and ensure the safety and wellbeing of your employees.

In Australia, employers are responsible for providing their staff with a safe workplace, free from hazards and health risks. Part of this responsibility means having proper first aid procedures, facilities and equipment in place.

Employers are legally responsible for providing first aid equipment in the workplace, in locations that all staff can easily access, and close to areas that present higher risk of accident or injury. If you’re a large worksite or organisation, spread out across a number of floors or buildings, this means providing multiple first aid kits. If employees travel for work, kits must also be present in all company vehicles.

Your business must also make sure there’s an adequate number of trained first aid providers that employees can go to for assistance. These first aid officers must hold a current first aid certificate and have the skills and knowledge to handle the situation until further medical assistance arrives, if necessary.

Emergency Training – Preparing Your Staff

Training must also be provided to employees to ensure they are familiar with your organisation’s emergency procedures, which can make a huge difference on the day if a crisis does emerge.

In the event of a fire, for example, the highest priority is always to get all occupants of the building out of harm’s way. Staff who have been trained in fire and evacuation procedures will know how to respond in an organised, methodical and efficient way, reducing risk to persons and property.

Training modules should be repeated on a regular basis to make sure individuals can refresh their knowledge and skills from time to time. While it’s important for all staff to attend first aid training, your designated first aiders will require more intensive additional training to be qualified to respond to incidents in the workplace.

Online Training for First Aid and Emergencies

So what’s the best way to deliver first aid and emergency training to staff across your organisation?

Through the use of workshops, online courses and eLearning training modules, you can make sure employees are properly engaged in workplace safety, while reducing the risk of accidents, injuries and hazards for your organisation.

If you’re an employer ready to invest in workplace training, Go1 can make this process a whole lot easier for you and your staff.

You can make your training process quick and easy by enrolling your teams in accredited first aid and emergency training courses through the Go1 platform.

By investing in high-quality training for your staff, you’ll be making the safety of your workplace a top priority and showing your commitment to the safety and wellbeing of your employees. You’ll also have peace of mind knowing that your business is compliant with Australian laws and regulations.

Are you providing emergency training for your staff?

Unfortunately, current statistics about sexual harassment in the workplace tell a horrifying story. Although public education and awareness help to some degree, this is a continuing problem that’s going to require a lot of involvement to reduce or hopefully, stop it. Not only do business owners play a significant role in protecting employees, but also their leadership team consisting of CEOs, CFOs, HR directors, compliance managers, L&D managers, and anyone else in a position of authority.

Sharing nude or pornographic photos or videos

Making comments or jokes pertaining to sex

Requesting sexual favors in exchange for some type of reward

Sharing or displaying statues, cartoons, icons, and dolls of a sexual nature

Writing memos, letters, text messages, or emails that include sexual innuendos

Making derogatory or insulting comments about or toward another employee of sexual nature

Making offensive remarks about a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation

Invading a person’s space in a sexual manner

Making sexual comments about a person’s clothing, appearance, or body parts

The following shows the difference between a hostile work environment sexual harassment and quid pro quo sexual harassment.

Hostile Work Environment Sexual Harassment – Anyone can commit this type of harassment, regardless of title or job responsibility. In fact, it can involve people outside of your organization, including clients, suppliers, vendors, couriers, members of the cleaning crew, repair people, etc. For this, there’s no offer of employee benefits in exchange for a sexual favor.

Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment – In this case, usually someone of authority makes unwanted, unwelcomed, or repeated advances in exchange for offering some type of employee benefit. Some examples include job promotion, bonus or raise, work-related opportunities, travel options, larger or better office, avoiding termination, and so on.

According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or EEOC, sexual harassment entails virtually any kind of unwanted or unwelcome advances of a sexual nature. It also defines sexual harassment as any comment that would prevent an employee from doing his or her job due to feelings of being threatened or intimated.

Although both genders end up on the receiving end of sexual harassment, this problem affects more women than men, especially those between the ages of 25 and 35. Not only are men and women the recipients of sexual harassment but also the perpetrators. Also, harassment occurs between two people of the same and opposite gender.

For a better understanding of what sexual harassment looks like in the workplace, consider the three examples below.

A male worker pulls out nude, partially nude, or pornographic photos to show to other employees while standing within feet from a female worker’s desk. The woman can see the images and hear the conversation about them. As someone disinterested, that act, whether intentional or not, is sexual harassment.

A male or female employee tells a dirty joke within earshot of another worker who finds it offensive. Again, that situation depicts sexual harassment.

An employee who is a natural toucher or hugger walks up to a worker and puts his or her arms around the individual. While that’s fine with family or close friends, an employee who goes to different people in the workplace touching them, making them feel uncomfortable is sexual harassment. Although the harasser meant no ill will, he still did something wrong.

As you review the current statistics on workplace sexual harassment, you’ll quickly realize if you don’t already have an action plan in place, you need to implement one immediately. For this, it’s critical you and your entire leadership team sit down to learn what constitutes sexual harassment.

Also, this is the perfect opportunity to organize training, so the company executives, managers, and staff learn how to spot a problem, who to report it to, how to prevent it, the way to react, and more. Thanks to one of the best Learning Management Systems, you can find hundreds upon hundreds of topics all relating to this topic.

In the workplace, a staggering 81 percent of women and 43 percent of men have experienced some kind of sexual harassment

There’s a 60 percent chance of experiencing sexual harassment at work

When asked, 25 percent of the workforce admitted to experiencing sexual harassment

Of women harassed, 30 percent said the harasser was a male co-worker while 25 percent was a male in a position of authority

Of targeted people, only 38 percent took any action

You and your entire leadership team carry most of the burden in identifying and preventing workplace sexual harassment. It’s vital you do everything humanly possible to protect the people who work for your organization. Start by developing a strict sexual harassment policy. Brainstorm with your executives and managers to include moral and legal requirements. As part of your new policy, make sure to cover prevention, reporting, investigation, and disciplinary action.

Include in your company’s sexual harassment policy what happens if someone fails to report an incident or a person in authority doesn’t handle it correctly. Because you’re liable, either scenario puts your company at risk for consequences. Especially if the same individual harasses another employee following the first case, things could turn ugly fast.

With the company policy in place, offer your entire organization training. Whether you have your staff complete online courses in a group setting or on an individual basis, everyone has the same information. Knowledge is what gives people the power needed to act appropriately when facing a situation of sexual harassment.

You should then have your leaders pass out some kind of booklet or pamphlet to their teams as a reference tool. Along with that, include policy material in the orientation package for any new hires. Even post the information in specific areas of the company, including the lunch room and in every manager’s office. Sexual harassment is a major deal, and you need to treat it as such.

In addition to the policy, you need to confront the person accused of committing sexual harassment. Because every situation is different, and on rare occasions, the victim isn’t telling the truth, talk to the person behind closed doors with his or her manager present.

Decreased self-confidence and self-esteem

Anger, frustration, fear, and irritability

Without handling the situation and providing workers with resources for overcoming these issues, they begin to lose interest in the company and their jobs. Some may begin to show up late to work, struggle as a team member, and experience a significant decline in work performance, forcing the manager to demote or terminate.

When going through online training for sexual harassment, you’ll learn all sorts of things, including the correct information to document. For example, you or a manager needs to write down what happened and include as many details as possible. If preferred, you can have the harassed individual prepare a written statement. Include the harasser’s and any witness’s names, as well as the date, time, and place of the incident.

With the documentation, it’s essential to gather information as to how the harassed employee felt afterward and ways the situation affected his or her job. These details will help you understand any fallout of what happened, best deal with the harasser, and protect the innocent party.

For instance, if the harassed individual moves to another department or takes a job with a different company, you want a paper trail as to why the employee suddenly started struggling at work. If the severity of the sexual harassment arises to the level that requires the involvement of law enforcement, a full written report will paint a complete picture of what occurred.

Even if you terminate the sexual harasser, the other party may need some time to deal with what happened. Make sure you offer support or professional counseling as needed. You want your employee to fully recover and continue being a valued member of your organization. Because sexual harassment is a problem most companies deal with at some point, there are tremendous resources available.

For the training portion, Go1 has an incredible library of podcasts, videos, and articles specific to sexual harassment in the workplace. You, your executives, managers, and staff can access the site and complete as much training as wanted for a nominal price. Contact us to speak with a representative, so we can help you select the right courses for your business.

Sexual harassment training: how to stay protected

Although preventing warehousing injuries and boosting safety within the overall industry falls back on multiple players within an organization, three have critical roles. Starting with the Human Resource Director, this individual must have policies in place to ensure the company hires qualified individuals on a job-to-job basis. That entails conducting backgrounds, requesting past employment referrals, and going through a detailed interview.

The second responsible party is the Compliance Manager. Considering there are numerous regulations and laws in place, this person must ensure every worker follows strict orders. The third party is the L&D Manager who oversees training for company employees. This individual must select the right courses and medium so workers grasp the training and apply what they learned to their jobs.

In other words, preventing warehousing injuries and improving safety is a collaborative effort. Otherwise, a company could face severe consequences. The following shows how working together on a plan reduces risks and more.

Human Resources - Hiring the right people for the job not only reduces the potential for on-the-job accidents, but it also decreases the volume of employee turnover and compliance costs.

Compliance – Again, there is less risk of someone sustaining an injury when working within the confines of the law. Staying compliant also reduces costs.

Training – With proper training, the risk of injury decreases substantially. Look at it this way, with direct and indirect costs of work-related injuries and illnesses hovering around $170 billion annually, the same for what it costs to treat cancer patients; you can see how vital a good training program is for everyone within your organization.

Among the many causes of warehouse injuries, some are more common than others. Following are examples of four, and the appropriate steps you can take to prevent or minimalise them.

As stated by OSHA, slips, falls, and trips account for the majority of warehouse injuries and 15 percent of all warehousing deaths. What makes this risk so interesting is, in most cases, the injury was preventable. The Compliance Manager needs to conduct regular inspections to make sure that workers follow all compliance regulations and laws.

Included is keeping aisles clear of clutter, cleaning up even the tiniest spill immediately, and reporting an issue that could cause a problem such as inadequate lighting. Again, proper training will go a long way in preventing slips, falls, and trips. Along with boosting the safety of warehouse employees, staying compliant prevents production downtime that could prove costly to the company, not to mention increasing insurance rates.

Failing to store materials correctly on pallet racks can lead to a collapse. Especially for multi-tiered racks or mezzanines, even small and lightweight objects falling to the ground can cause severe injury, or worse. In addition to putting adequate space between the stacks of pallets, this is a prime example of how critical it is for the L&D manager to provide workers with extensive training.

As part of that, employees will learn the right way to maneuver a forklift, the importance of stacking smaller and lighter weight items on top of large and heavier ones. The Compliance Manager also plays a critical role by regularly inspecting the racks to ensure their positioning and other factors are in line with current regulations and laws.

If your employees work around or handle hazardous materials, ongoing inspections and training are vital. Although a hazmat team would likely come in to deal with any accidental leaks or spills, it is still essential for workers to have proper training. That way, they can quickly identify a possible threat and report it to the appropriate authority.

In this situation, the Compliance Manager should make sure that employees have easy access to both safety data sheets and personal protective equipment. From there, the L&D Manager can take over by providing workers with thorough training on how to use these items. When dealing with hazardous materials, your company needs to establish a response plan that allows employees to control the situation and thereby, avoid injury or illness.

When interviewing people to work as a forklift driver for your company, the HR department needs to confirm experience and training. Even when hiring someone who ran this type of equipment for years, the L&D Manager must continue to provide training in line with the company’s policies, as well as compliance laws and regulations.

Along with teaching drivers how to avoid crashes, a supervisor should carefully check forklifts before each shift. While this requires a little more work, it helps prevent injuries and even death.

When you consider the types of jobs that people do in a warehouse environment, accidents will happen. However, when the HR, compliance, and training departments work together to formulate a plan, the level of risk decreases significantly.

For training, the L&D Manager can choose from multiple topics online that relate to warehouse work. At Go1, we provide excellent courses written and often presented by industry experts. By going the online route, there is virtually no disruption to workflow and production.

Have your HR, Compliance, L&D managers determine the appropriate courses for new hires as well as existing employees. You can take training a step further by giving your leadership the opportunity to learn new skills and hone existing ones. With that, they become aware of potential risks, and thereby, more effective in their respective roles.

Preventing warehousing injuries / safety in the warehousing industry

OSHA, operated under the US Department of Labor, is a government entity responsible for setting and enforcing rules that promote health and safety in the work environment. As long as your company remains compliant, you do not have to worry about fines, temporary production shut-down, and reckless actions that could ultimately lead to employee injury, illness, or even death.

Many people have the misconception that OSHA is nothing more than a tough enforcer of strict laws. While that is one aspect of what it does, this organization offers a lot more value. For one thing, remember the regulations enforced by OSHA are to help businesses like yours decrease the number of incidents within the work environment.

However, OSHA also offers both assistance and training to employers and their employees. Through a unique opportunity known as the OSHA Outreach Training Program, you can have your leadership team identify workers who need new or additional knowledge and skills for the work performed. The number one goal of this program is to help employees identify potential and known risks and to prepare them to take the appropriate action.

Because of the many benefits the OSHA Outreach Training Program provides, some states now mandate specific workers to complete a portion of or the entire program. Whether required to complete the program or having employees take it on a voluntary basis, there are two options, 10 and 30-hour training. Both of these include an overview of the types of hazards someone might see at work, the proper way to avoid, control, and prevent a dangerous situation, and the appropriate person to tell about a possible threat.

Not only is the OSHA Outreach Training Program available online, but this nationally accepted program gives workers access to their trainer 24x7. After completing the program, participants can download their certificate immediately. Following are some examples of the topics covered in this program, some state-specific and others with a broader reach.

If you operate your business out of any of the following states, by law, you must ensure the required supervisors and employees complete the right portion of the OSHA Outreach Training Program. The information provided outlines the specific training requirements, as well as the employees or supervisors who need to complete the program.

Connecticut – This state mandates all employees who work on a public building project with a total cost of $100,000 or more to complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program 30 days before awarding of the contract. These same individuals must complete this part of the program every five years.

Massachusetts – Employees working on all public sector projects have to complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program before going onsite.

Missouri – This state mandates all employees who work on a public works project complete the OSHA Construction training program 60 days before starting work.

Nevada – While construction employees must complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program, supervisors have to go through the OSHA 30 Construction training program, both within 15 days of their hire date.

New Hampshire – Employees working on funded projects of $100,000 or more, both local municipality and state, must complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program within 15 days of starting work.

New York – For public work projects valued at $250,000 or more, the mandate is for employees to complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program.

Pennsylvania – For construction and demolition projects that require a permit, workers must take the OSHA 10 Construction training program. Also, under Section 9-1004 of the Philadelphia Code, all licensed contractors must employ a minimum of one supervisory employee who finished the OSHA 30 Construction training program.

Rhode Island – Workers on state or municipal construction projects of $100,000 or more must complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program.

West Virginia – For any public improvement project of $50,000 or more, employees have 21 days from the date of hire at a public improvement job site to complete the OSHA 10 Construction training program.

There are a few important things to note.

First, while the OSHA Outreach Training Program is of tremendous value, it does cover the requirements for training according to OSHA standards. That means for both safety and health topics, it is possible that you will need to provide your employees with additional training even after completing this incredible program.

Second, you can take advantage of a broad range of topics available through an online eLearning platform. By combining the three and implementing the appropriate measures, the chance of someone sustaining an injury or becoming ill on the job diminishes substantially.

Along with state-specific mandates and available training through OSHA, Go1 has tons of topics on workplace health and safety for multiple industries. Our online training courses are of short duration, usually no longer than one hour, and offered for a nominal price. However, because experts develop and often present the training, you never compromise on quality.

By providing not only your employees but also leadership teams with excellent training, you end up with a company that operates more proficiently, as well as safer. With fewer incidents on the job, you and your entire organization can focus on the business and achieving long-term success. As a responsible owner who cares about every employee, take the opportunity to get your HR, Compliance, and L&D Manager involved with selecting training courses they feel their teams need.

State-specific OSHA Outreach Training Program requirements

Multiple industries must follow compliance laws and regulations. Not doing so could result in receiving a citation, which leads to further problems. As a responsible owner, you want to do everything you can to avoid having an industry or government agency cite your business.As a responsible owner, you want to do everything you can to avoid having an industry or government agency cite your business. This is one reason why online training courses are a critical tool at your disposal. When you use the best source of material, you can avoid costly consequences.

Staying compliant means your organization conforms to set regulations, policies, and laws. The goal is to meet all mandated compliance requirements to avoid receiving a citation. A violation is bad enough, but in response to that, a lot of negative things can happen. You need to understand that compliance regulations, policies, and laws cover many areas, including internet use, financials, manufacturing processes, materials and substances used, human resource policies, importing and exporting, employee safety, and more.

For your business, it is critical to learn what regulations, policies, and laws apply and then make any necessary changes to ensure it is 100 percent compliant. For companies based in the United States, employers can visit the Small Business Administration website, which provides a single point of access to information and government services to help them remain compliant.

OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) dates back to 1970. Congress created this organization to ensure safe and healthy working conditions through a set of enforceable standards. To accomplish those goals, OSHA develops extensive training materials, offers outreach programs, educates employers, and helps both employers and workers whenever needed.

Compliance enforcers and requirements vary to some degree depending on the type of industry and the regulation, policy, or law. However, keeping employees safe has no boundaries. Although the risk of injury is significantly higher for manual labor jobs, this is something that can happen even in a two-person office. For that reason, it is imperative that you adopt policies that guarantee compliance, thereby dramatically reducing the possibility of someone sustaining an injury at work.

Although OSHA has compliance mandates specific to different industries, all business owners should take the time to review the basic standards under “general industry.” This standard, known as 29 CFR 1910, serves as a foundation for a typical work environment.

Following are a few examples of the top OSHA violations.

Fall Protection (Construction) – While someone can fall and sustain an injury in any work environment, this risk affects the construction and similar industries the most. As a way of protecting workers from fall-related accidents, OSHA created two unique sets of standards. While one of the fall protection standards applies specific to the construction industry, the other is for all remaining industries.

Respiratory Protection – This compliance standard applies to industries with a risk of employee exposure to gasses, sprays, dust, smoke, fumes, or vapors. For compliance, employers must create, maintain, and enforce a protection program specific to respiratory accidents. They must provide workers with a proper correct breathing apparatus and train them on safe use and maintenance. Also, employers must monitor workers to ensure they follow instructions.

Hazard Communication – This OSHA standard helps prevent injuries to workers who are exposed to chemicals. For employers to remain compliant, they must create and implement a written program about hazard communication, including a list of all hazardous substances used by the company. Employers must also share this information with employees and provide training on dangerous substances, the proper use of chemicals, and the appropriate steps to take for protection.

Other OSHA standards cover electrical wiring, scaffolding, ladders, machine guarding, powered industrial trucks, and more.

OSHA even has compliance mandates in place for employee medical records. Under section 1910.1020, employees, their designated representatives, and government officials should always have access to specific records for both exposure and medical care. According to this standard, approved requesters can gain access to files within a reasonable amount of time, at a reasonable place, and in a reasonable manner.

Along with reviewing the material provided by the Small Business Administration, you as a business owner should perform self-inspections on a consistent basis to ensure your company is 100 percent compliance. For instance, inspect walkways to make sure they are clutter-free. Also, have a nonslip material applied to the floor, fill any cracks and holes, remove any protruding or sharp objects, clean up spilled materials immediately, and so on.