Survey reveals frontline workers are not receiving workplace health and safety training

Survey data released on the United Nations World Day for Health and Safety at Work has identified an urgent need for businesses and their frontline workers to reprioritize workplace health and safety.

The data released today by SafetyCulture and YouGov represents the views of American, British and Australian “frontline workers” – defined as individuals who must “physically show up to their job”, including the likes of hospitality, retail, manufacturing, and logistics workers. 

The survey revealed:

• Less than half of frontline workers (44%) said they had received workplace health and safety training in the past year.

• More than 1 in 5 frontline workers (24%) went on to say they hadn’t received any form of training in the past year. 

• More than 1 in 4 frontline workers (29%) are unsure where to find their company’s workplace health and safety policy, with a further 1 in 10 (11%) unsure if it even exists.  

Bob Butler, Global General Manager of SafetyCulture said, “Our research shows that a degree of complacency is creeping into workplaces as we emerge from the pandemic and companies battle ongoing labor shortages, increased demands on productivity, and workplace burnout. However, working with our customers around the world, we continue to see how simple it can be to harness new technology, implement small changes and start the wheel of continuous improvement.” 

“Today is the perfect opportunity to start putting health and safety firmly back on the agenda. Technology can help sharpen our focus, making sure every detail and element of risk is accounted for in business operations. Every worker has a role to play in preventing occupational accidents and their employers can help by investing in the right tools and effective training.”

SafetyCulture is helping to create safe working environments through cutting-edge digital safety solutions and training. For information on how organisations and individuals can get started, please visit https://safetyculture.com.

About the research

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,980 adults (858 US, 553 Australia, 569 UK). Fieldwork was undertaken during April 2022. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of US, UK and AU frontline workers (aged 18+).

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