Company-Specific Course Development for Safer Work
Total Group develops workplace training around your operations, equipment, procedures, hazards, and workforce. We can shape the programme for in-person, virtual, or hybrid delivery, with the final learning outcomes and assessment method set during the scoping process.
Training built around the work your people do
Generic awareness content may not cover the decisions your workers make at your site. A company-specific course can use your safe work procedures, emergency plans, permits, equipment, forms, and incident lessons as training inputs. The design can then connect each topic to a clear workplace task, such as planning a confined-space job, checking a gas monitor, setting up fall protection, isolating equipment, or escalating an unsafe condition.
Good training also separates knowledge from performance. Online theory can introduce terms, roles, hazards, and procedures. It cannot by itself prove that a person can inspect equipment, use it correctly, communicate during a task, or respond to an emergency. Where the work requires hands-on ability, the course should include demonstration, supervised practice, scenario work, or an employer assessment that matches the task.
What the development process can cover
Total Group can work with your subject-matter experts and safety team to define the audience, work scope, hazards, controls, and evidence of learning. CCOHS identifies worker orientation, training and education, safe work procedures, hazard assessment and control, emergency planning, and programme review as core health and safety programme elements. It also notes that training may be needed when a person starts work, changes jobs, receives new equipment or procedures, faces changed legal requirements, or shows an identified performance gap. [1]
- Review the work, workplace, equipment, policies, procedures, and applicable regulatory framework.
- Set learning outcomes for workers, supervisors, emergency responders, or internal instructors.
- Build examples, demonstrations, practice activities, checklists, knowledge checks, and field evidence around the job.
- Prepare participant and instructor materials, subject to the agreed scope and deliverables.
- Plan how completion, understanding, practical performance, and follow-up records will be handled by the employer.
Choosing the right training level
Start with the decision the learner must make and the consequence of getting it wrong. Awareness training may suit people who need to recognize hazards, understand their responsibilities, and report concerns. Task training is more suitable when workers must follow a procedure or operate equipment. Supervisor training should address hazard recognition, assessment, control, and the supervisor’s authority over the work. Technical or emergency-response training may require equipment practice, realistic scenarios, instructor observation, and a defined performance check.
Ontario provides a clear example of why the jurisdiction matters. Under Ontario Regulation 297/13, employers must ensure workers complete basic awareness training and supervisors complete the supervisor awareness programme. The regulation sets different minimum content for workers and supervisors, and states that basic awareness training does not replace other specific workplace health and safety training. [2] Ontario also requires approved programmes and providers for certain working-at-heights training on construction projects. [2] Alberta has its own Occupational Health and Safety Act, regulation, and code, with training duties administered through that framework. [3] The site jurisdiction, employment jurisdiction, work activity, and client requirements should be confirmed before the course is presented as meeting a legal or contractual requirement.
Questions to prepare before scoping
- Where will the work take place, and who employs and controls the affected workers?
- What tasks, equipment, chemicals, permits, emergency arrangements, and site rules must the course address?
- Is the need awareness, task qualification, supervisor capability, emergency response, refresher training, or internal instructor development?
- What must learners demonstrate in the workplace, and who will observe or accept that evidence?
- Which laws, standards, client specifications, manufacturer instructions, and company procedures apply?
- What existing manuals, incident findings, forms, photos, or lessons learned should inform the course?
Online theory, practical competence, and completion records
A virtual or hybrid format can support instruction, discussion, document review, and knowledge checks. Practical competence still needs a suitable workplace or training environment, the right equipment, competent supervision, and an assessment method that the employer accepts. A course completion record is not automatically a licence, regulatory approval, trade qualification, or proof of competence for every job or jurisdiction.
If you are seeking train-the-trainer development, confirm the intended subject, jurisdiction, approving body, instructor eligibility, delivery rules, and evidence required before work begins. Total Group can scope an instructor-development package around verified requirements, but approval or certification should be stated only when the responsible authority and current course status have been confirmed.
Frequently asked questions
Can the course use our company procedures?
Yes. Your procedures, equipment information, forms, emergency plans, and site examples can inform the design when they are current and approved for use. The course should also identify which requirements come from law, a standard, a client, or your own programme.
Can one course serve workers and supervisors?
It can share a common foundation, but the learning outcomes and assessment should reflect each role. Supervisors may need additional work on hazard assessment, control decisions, communication, and authority over the task.
Will a custom course meet every jurisdiction’s requirements?
No single course should be described that way without a jurisdiction and scope review. Requirements can change by province or territory, industry, work activity, employer, client, and approving authority. Total Group can use the confirmed framework to define what the course addresses and what remains the employer’s responsibility.
How do we start?
Contact Total Group with the worksite or workforce need, the training level under consideration, the jurisdictions involved, and any current procedures or standards. We will use that information to discuss the course scope, delivery approach, practical requirements, and next steps.
References
- CCOHS, Health and Safety Program: General Elements, including programme elements, training triggers, assessment, and competence guidance.
- Ontario Regulation 297/13, Occupational Health and Safety Awareness and Training, sections 1–10, including worker and supervisor awareness, records, and working-at-heights provisions.
- Government of Alberta, Occupational health and safety, overview of Alberta’s OHS Act, regulation, code, and training-related resources.
