Safety Officer Course: A Day In The Life Of A Certified Safety Officer

Completing a safety officer course can open doors to several industries. While the day-to-day of a certified safety officer's day may vary, their core duties remain the same: to ensure the companies they work for or with adhere to national workplace safety standards.

In essence, the job of a safety officer is to ensure that their co-workers are safe and that there are safety plans in place to deal with any emergency safety scenarios. EMCARE offers a safety officer course package developed explicitly in South Africa. The safety officer course will help give health and safety industry workers the tools to help businesses comply with local workplace safety guidelines.

A Look Into What EMCARE's Safety Officer Course Entails

The EMCARE Safety Officer course is made up of 10 modules, including:

• First Aid levels 1, 2, and 3 combined
  
  
• Basic firefighting
  
  
• Legal liability
  
  
• SHE (safety, health and environment) representation
  
  
• RISK assessment
  
  
• Accident/incident investigations
  
  
• Emergency evacuation
  
  
• Hazardous material handling
  
  
• OHS supervisor certificate
  
  
• Safety officer certificate

These course modules can be completed individually on days available in the training schedule. Upon completing all course modules, you will have access to an online safety officer assessment, including case studies and the final exam.

The Core Duties Of A Safety Officer

Completing a safety officer course is easy, but specific characteristics will help you pursue a career in health and safety. Health and safety work requires individuals with the following qualities, characteristics and strengths:

• Have an accredited health and safety qualification, competency program, training and course recognised by a SETA.
  
  
• Passion about your job and your role as a safety officer.
  
  
• Excellent communication skills to build a good health and safety culture in the workplace, well executing the planned health and safety goals across all company levels.

A safety officer is a valuable addition to many organisations, benefiting management, the workforce, and the business's brand as they serve a crucial cost-saving function.

Safety officers need accredited and specialised training, followed by work experience, to become competent and effective in health and safety and positively impact their workplace and organisation. The organisation's chief executive officer or director, as well as the safety officer or health and safety manager, are responsible for the health and safety of employees at work. The CEO or director, who is ultimately accountable, delegated responsibility for health and safety duties to the accredited and trained safety officers. The job description and responsibilities for a safety officer would include duties like:

• Taking care of the overall employee population's health, safety, and well-being.
  
  
• Giving top decision-makers and management advice and direction on health and safety-related issues.
  
  
• Fostering a positive health and safety culture inside the company and involving staff in H&S issues whenever and wherever practical.
  
  
• Completing detailed health and safety risk assessments of the entire workplace to locate all hazards and their potential risks and implementing efficient control mechanisms to lower the risk to a manageable level.
  
  
• Coordinating the management of the employee base's health and safety training programs, including first aid, firefighting, health and safety representative from the pool of employees, and health and safety supervisor from the pool of managers, risk assessment, accident and incident, evacuation planning, and any other health and safety manager training requirements.
  
  
• Creating and executing efficient safety policies for the workplace in all departments and industry sectors.
  
  
• Enforcing the obligations of employees in terms of health and safety.
  
  
• Monitoring, analysing, and enhancing H&S at least once a year, but ideally whenever necessary.

The Day-To-Day Of A Certified Safety Officer

After completing a safety officer course, like the comprehensive one offered with us at EMCARE, a world of responsibility will await you, but don�t fear it, as your training from EMCARE will provide you with all the necessary tools to do the job well. Completing a safety officer course will allow you to work as a health and safety employee across several South African sectors. From mining to technology, the world is your oyster. As you work, you need to keep up to date with other safety officer courses, which could also provide opportunities for you to work abroad.

Here are some daily responsibilities of safety officers:

Implement Safety Policies

Safety officers are like an organisation's health and safety law enforcement. They should be aware and well-read on all safety procedures, standards and acts to guarantee they are followed. They are the first to speak up if they witness wrongdoing or actions that could result in an accident or penalty.

Be Dutiful About Audits And Inspections

Routine workplace safety inspections are conducted by safety officers who have completed a safety officer course to identify possible dangers and observe personnel to verify they are following safety protocols while on the job. Furthermore, safety officers will conduct safety audits per business policy and compliance standards to keep the safety program on track and avoid fines.

Investigate Accidents

When an incident occurs on the job site, whether serious or trivial, it must be examined. Safety officers oversee the entire procedure, including determining why the incident occurred and what needs to be done to prevent mishaps in future.

Maintain Compliance

Whatever industry you work in, you are responsible for adhering to OHS compliance rules. The safety officer monitors compliance standards and any modifications to these standards over time. They complete and submit the necessary papers and reports, such as injury logs. They ensure that the needed OHS posters are visible and current at your organisation. This keeps your organisation compliant, allowing you to avoid fines and build your safety culture.

Train Employees

One of the most important aspects of a safety officer's job is to provide vital training to employees on guidelines, best practices, and corporate protocol. OHS requires employers to provide safety training, and the safety officer usually delivers the training and verifies that the criteria are completed.