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Training for Construction Workers:
General Induction: Safety, Health, and the Environment
Workers have a huge influence on the safety of people on site and the community, and how well the environment is protected. Making sure they know what to do is essential to delivering good project performance.
- Does your project involve construction?
- Are you concerned about the standard of training that workers have received or will receive?
- Does safety, health, and environmental performance on site need improving?
This General Induction for Construction Workers: Safety, Health and the Environment will help the contractor build the capacity of workers. It provides the minimum actions workers should do to protect the environment, respect local communities and to keep them and others safe & healthy.
Workers who have been trained using this General Induction for Construction Workers: Safety, Health and the Environment will be able to carry out their activities safely and in a way that minimizes environmental and social impacts. They will be able to perform their duties and meet the requirements of the World Bank’s Environmental and Social Framework (ESF) as well as good international industry practice.
Based on good industry practice, it promotes a good standard of worker performance that is appropriate for low- and middle-income countries, and for construction projects of all types and sizes. It’s pre-prepared, quick, and easy to deliver to workers.
Who delivers induction training?
It’s for contractors to deliver induction training to their construction workers. The main contractor’s site manager with their environmental, health, and safety staff are the best people to lead the induction training.
All workers on a construction site are required to have an induction training to provide them with the ‘rules’ that need to be followed on the site. Contractors are responsible for providing this training, but at present there is much variation in the quality and coverage of the training provided. This General Induction for Construction Workers: Safety, Health and the Environment provides an appropriate standard for induction training that will help projects achieve expected levels of ESHS performance.
When should induction training be provided?
Every worker should receive an induction before they start work on site, and refresher induction training at least once a year thereafter.
As this General Induction for Construction Workers: Safety, Health and the Environment is arranged in modules, individual modules can be used to provide interim refresher training on an as needed basis, for example in response to issues that arise on site.
What form does the General Induction for Construction Workers: Safety, Health and the Environment take?
The general induction is arranged in three sections, with a total of 17 modules. It comprises:
- clear and concise PowerPoint slides with photos of good and bad practice
- a narration script for the trainer, with tips on how to make the training interactive
- a quiz to help workers engage and to remember what to do
- instructions for the trainer on how best to run the course for effective learning
- a ‘Key things to remember’ for workers to take away
What topics does the general induction cover?
The three sections cover the essential things a worker needs to do all the time; when working on everyday construction tasks; and when undertaking some specific activities. Not all the modules covering specific activities may be relevant to a project, and only those activities that will be undertaken should be covered in the training.
Section 1: Essential things to do
1. Why safety, health, and the environment matter
2. Before you start work
3. Avoiding hazards and risks
4. Staying healthy
5. Keeping the community safe
6. Respecting yourself and others
Section 2: Everyday tasks
7. Dealing with incidents
8. Using fuels, oils, chemicals, and materials
9. Reusing, recycling, and disposing of waste
10. Lifting loads by hand
11. Staying in worker accommodation
Section 3: Specific activities
12. Using tools and static machines
13. Using electricity and electric tools
14. Working in excavations and earthworks
15. Working at height
16. Working on or next to a road
17. Working over or near water
How long does the general induction take?
It takes only around 2 hours to present all the modules, as each module is designed to be covered in less than 10 minutes. Within the induction training session, some time should also be allowed for discussion and for the quiz, as this will help to consolidate the learning. It’s a minimal amount of time out of the workplace for the improvements it brings.
How will contractors know to use this general induction?
Contractors may adopt voluntarily this General Induction for Construction Workers: Safety, Health, and the Environment as it provides a ready-made training suitable for construction projects that represent good international industry practice for working in low- and middle-income countries.
It may also be a requirement for the contractor to use this induction training, if referenced in the project documentation (such as the Environmental and Social Impact Assessment) or the construction contract.
