The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is tasked with keeping workers in industrial and manual labor jobs across the country safe. Providing safety guidelines and regulations for businesses to follow, they work to minimize the risk of injury on each specific job site. OSHA also accomplishes this task by requiring businesses to adequately train their employees in safety processes. These are the different types of OSHA training and what each branch of it requires.  

General Industry OSHA Training

This type of industry training provides employees with a clear understanding of what typical work hazards might look like and how to respond to them. This type of training is geared more specifically towards professions outside of the construction industry, such as health care, manufacturing, and warehousing. As such, employees undergoing this process learn everything from basic first aid to the importance of forklift maintenance and how to operate heavy machinery. With this core basis of knowledge, they can be prepared for a series of different working situations and have access to the resources they need in a dangerous situation.

Construction and Maintenance OSHA Training

Since construction sites are rarely the same, and because this industry has a wider range of tools and hazards, official OSHA construction training is a bit different from the general curriculum. Unlike general industry training, this regimen covers more specific safety procedures and skills required for navigating dangerous areas during a job. This often includes fall protection and the purpose of positioning devices as well as safe techniques for building, altering, or repairing any number of projects. Construction OSHA training also allows workers to become certified in handling certain tools, such as rigging and crane equipment. Depending on a person’s level of training in these matters, they could have even more career growth and additional opportunities.