Training
at Tower
! Press Release Abridged ! ! Press Release Abridged ! Press Release Abridged !
TRAINING PAYS IN WALES
Employers in Wales recognise that investment in training
pays dividends on bottom line profits and can increase the
morale and motivation of the workforce. At a prestigious
ceremony held at the Manor Park Hotel today the Secretary
of State for Wales congratulated five Welsh employers,
two Training providers and four individuals who won the
much coveted National Training Awards in Wales. The awards
which were introduced 10 years ago are granted to employers
who have shown outstanding examples of excellence in
training and individuals who have shown outstanding
commitment and achievement in their own development.
TOWER COLLIERY
Among the winners were Tower Colliery who after only one
year of operation achieved an exemplary record in health
and safety in the Mining industry by introducing an
innovative safety training programme linked to National
Vocational Qualifications (NVQ's). The programme resulted
in an 80% reduction in accidents over the previous British
Coal record and Tower are committed to continuing to
reduce accident rates.
Company Training Officer Gary O' Brien commented
"We were concerned that after a year of closure
everyone's skills could be rusty,and
that the men might be tempted to take short cuts in safety to
increase production.
We decided to anticipate training
needs rather than respond to crisis situations.
The
training has had massive benefits for everyone.
We aimed to reduce accidents by
10% we reduced them by 80% and as a result our accident
insurance premium has
been cut by half a million pounds !
We are now adopting this advance planning
approach for all our training. We have proved that you don't need to compromise
safety to maximise profit,
and that good training pays dividends ! We are delighted
that our outstanding success has been recognised by the
achievement of a National
Training Award for Wales."
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