Safety first: Grant funds worker training on electrical hazards

Electrocutions and electrical hazards are one of the top four causes of work-related fatalities, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Association — and that makes electrical safety training especially important.

That’s why OSHA has awarded Iowa Lakes Community College a Susan Harwood Training Grant, which will fund training on electrical hazard safety using National Fire Protection Association materials.

Attendees will learn how to follow appropriate safety procedures and abide by the OSHA standards related to electricity in the workplace.

The goal of the project is to train 325 people who work in high-hazard industries. Attendees may be from the construction, manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, and other high-hazard industry sectors. Translators will assist to provide 20 percent of the trainings in Spanish and other non-English languages.

Geographically, the trainings will be located in nine rural counties across northwestern Iowa and southwestern Minnesota. The counties served are Clay, Dickinson, Emmet, Kossuth, and Palo Alto counties in Iowa and Faribault, Jackson, Martin, and Nobles counties in Minnesota.

Currently in the rural counties targeted by the project, electrical hazard safety training is only offered by employers. The Continuing Education department of Iowa Lakes Community College has provided the training to employers on a case-by-case basis.

However, for many small businesses, the cost can be prohibitive. OSHA grant funds will allow the electrical hazard safety training to be offered to the attendees at no cost to them.

To see if your company qualifies to send attendees to a training, contact Gary Schmidt at 712-362-6807 or gschmidt@iowalakes.educreate new email.

For More Information:

Gary Schmidt at 712-362-6807 or gschmidt@iowalakes.educreate new email