How to Host a Great Toolbox Talk

 
The toolbox talk. You'll find a lot of funny YouTube videos mocking the concept, but they are still a great opportunity to get a safety message across if done right. 

Toolbox talks are typically 5 - 10 minute safety talks. They supplement routine scheduled safety training. Many times they are not led by a safety manager, but by a frontline supervisor or operations staff to really drive home the point that management is on board with safety. It's a great opportunity to give a different perspective on safety to employees.

Let's talk about common toolbox talk pitfalls and how to make things more engaging.

 When to hold them?

There's certainly no hard-and-fast rule. In a field context, holding them before the morning shift begins can start the day off on the right foot. Based on the hazards, you can determine the frequency you want to hold them. Maybe once a week is a good start and gauge effectiveness from there. There is something to be said about creating a routine and sticking to it, once the best frequency is found.

What to talk about?

Pick the hazards that are most relevant to your employees. Consider separating employees into different groups based on their hazards, or inviting different groups together if the hazards discussed are more general. No need to hammer on the same topics either. Toolbox talks shouldn't be taking the place of more formal training throughout the year. They're a great opportunity for reminders about hazards and to make an impact on employees through a case study or personal story.

What about content?

A lot of the time, you might not have access to projector and classroom environment for a toolbox talk. That's OK! Having everyone out in the field in the spot where most of the hazards are anyway can spark its own kind of discussion.

If you've got a story from someone within the company and they're all right with you sharing (be sure to ask permission first!), that can be especially impactful. Otherwise, simple hands-on demonstrations are another great strategy. Doing a quick watermelon tool drop (example here) is a great visual to promote helmet use, for example. Think out of the box.

If you've got the kind of group that might go for this, consider having different employees lead toolbox talks. They can pick the topic themselves, which means they may pick something they have a lot of expertise about or have personal experience with. Supporting employees who do this by helping them find resources or stepping in to talk during a slower moment during the toolbox talk is usually appreciated as well.

Toolbox talks can have a great return on investment. They do not take much time to hold or effort to prepare, but they are in the employees' normal work environment and can serve as a great reminder in the moment about hazards they face every day. If you haven't incorporated toolbox talks into your safety program, consider taking the step. And be sure to ask TT&S for any help if needed. 

Air Quality Revisited

 

I'm sure we here in North Dakota have all noticed the deteriorating air quality over the past week. It's a great time to revisit the basics on air quality with our original post. Please remember to take steps to protect yourselves and other employees by keeping tabs on air quality and adhering to the recommendations provided by the AirNow.gov site.

This site is an incredible resource, with data pulled from various agencies, including NASA, CDC, THE NOAA, and the National Park Service. Take advantage of these resources and keep yourselves informed and safe!

Air Monitors 101

If your work involves entering confined spaces, you hopefully already know a thing or two about air monitors. Here's a great resource from EHS Today that goes over common troubleshooting procedures for air monitors. We recommend also taking the time to look through the owner's manual so you understand the basics of their operation. 

If your job has issued you an air monitor, that means it's absolutely essential to confirm it is operational and working properly before entering a confined space. If you're having issues with your air monitors, also feel free to contact TT&S for assistance. We're here to help!

Don't wait

It's a sad story, made worse by how often it happens.

A company doesn't have a safety system in place. They haven't done much to figure out what the risks are in their company and they don't have a robust training program. But they've been fine, probably for years. No one's been seriously injured or worse.

And then something does happen. There's a severe injury or fatality. Everyone scrambles to finally take this safety stuff seriously.

But it's too late.

We've been preaching on the value of creating a safety system in your company that is sustainable, can adapt to change, and that promotes transparency within all levels of your organization.

But maybe that message is too fast, too soon -- especially for newer businesses or smaller organizations. It can be tough to carve out the resources for safety when you're small or just beginning. And if you've been following our messaging, maybe it's too sudden a change and feels overwhelming.

Here's a word to the wise, though: Don't wait.

It might seem like the task is too big and you've got other issues that feel more immediate on your plate.

But don't wait.

If you haven't had a chance to sit down for risk assessment, lurking in your day-to-day operations are risks of all kinds -- some minor, but some probably much less so.

While you might go long periods of time without an incident -- years, even -- that doesn't mean you're necessarily doing things well or have captured your risk profile. It might just mean those risks have remained undiscovered or uncontrolled. And if they're major, it's only a statistical matter of time before something goes terribly wrong.

Consider these few simple, low-cost steps if you are at the very beginning stages of creating your safety program.

1.  Ask employees what the risks are. Ask them: What is the next incident going to be? They will probably know. Find ways for them to respond in a non-pressured way. Have a suggestion box. Or a great idea from another safety manager: have employees write down their prediction of the next incident on a post-it note and stick it on their supervisor's or HR manager's door. That takes the pressure off of talking during a meeting, or of having their name attached to a specific hazard.

2. If you don't get much response on this, (and you might not), don't give up! Take some baby steps to create engagement with employees. Find strategies to get to know them and build up that trust. Your frontline employees are your greatest resource on what the hazards are and where things can go terribly wrong.

3. Unless there's an immediate severe hazard, before you jump into a solution (new PPE, new policy, new anything), discuss with stakeholders, including frontline employees and their supervisor(s). Roll out solutions on a trial basis. Do field tests with a couple different solutions.

4. If a control you've put in place doesn't quite fit the bill as promised, don't give up. Consider creative solutions: Can you combine controls? Tweak your current set up? Have you considered refining your processes? So many times safety is conceptualized as the enemy of productivity, but time after time, we see that it can actually enhance productivity and streamline processes with a little creative problem solving.

Taking those first baby steps to a safety program does not require masters-level education on safety compliance. It doesn't mean you should stop there, either. But don't become paralyzed with options and information about safety regulations. Act now! Don't wait.

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month

Remember that distracted driving is probably the most dangerous activity you can do on a daily basis. It only takes a split-second for something to go wrong, and for tragedy to strike.

"The National Safety Council analysis of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data finds that more than 3,000 people died in distraction-affected crashes in 2020; that is an average of nearly nine people dying in a distracted driving-related crash every single day on American roads."

Nine people losing their lives every due to a completely preventable behavior is unacceptable.

 Consider taking the Just Drive pledge from the National Safety Council here.

Safety Wearables: Height of Safety or Hype?

This one isn't real, folks -- but someday it might be!

You may or may not be aware of one of the newer trends in safety: The rise of wearables. From monitoring-based devices that can tell you when an employee is at risk of suffering from heat illness, to exoskeletons that can support employees with lifting activities, applications of wearables are across the spectrum of risks. But they haven't been out there long yet, so you may have questions. Here's some general insight before you allocate budget to one of these devices.

1. Make the punishment fit the crime

Alright, that's a little bit clickbaity, but here's what I mean: There's lots of shiny new devices on the market, so make sure you've done the risk analysis to see if the wearable is really the best solution out there for the risk you're trying to control or limit. Many times, simpler is better. Also, find what research there is for the wearable you're considering. Does the research bear out that it does what it says it will do and is an effective control? This could go both ways: There's probably wearables out there that are a godsend for their specific use case, and others out there whose creators jumped on the wearable bandwagon to make a less-than-stellar product. Make sure you know which one you're working with.

2.  Don't put the cart before the horse

While you might think a wearable might be the greatest invention since sliced bread, make sure to put it into the ecosystem of your risk management profile. What I mean by that is: Do you have a risk management heat map that you've put together? 

For the risk you're trying to control for, is that risk a high priority to mitigate, or is it farther down the list? Don't be tempted to skip down to lower levels of risk priority to accommodate a fancy new wearable.

3. Make sure you have the resources to support the wearable's introduction

When you introduce a new piece of equipment for use in an organization, almost always you'll need to implement a 'program' to support the new device. If your new wearable is electronic, have you considered who will be charging it as needed or updating software? Who will be in charge of troubleshooting the device if something goes wrong? There's lots of things to consider, so make sure you have the resources needed to support the program's success in an ongoing way.

4. Do you have a phased-in plan for introduction?

In my experience, introducing new devices to an organization is usually much more successful if you have a planned introduction process. The first steps usually include researching different options and getting feedback from relevant team members on which options of a few they would be willing to try. Field testing a couple of alternatives is usually really helpful. And then once the best wearable is decided on, ordering a limited supply and having a longer-term pilot test (maybe over a few months) is the best way forward. The key here is continued feedback from the employees who will be using the device. If buy-in is not achieved before larger scale adoption, I've found the program is not usually as successful.

 

This article turned out to be a little more doom-and-gloom than expected, and companies should not be afraid to get their feet wet in the wearable world. There are some that are showing a lot of promise, and as technology continues to advance, it's not hard to imagine a future where safety wearables are an everyday thing. As long as you're following best practices in determining the right fit of wearables to the risk being controlled, introduce them with a good plan, and ensure you have the resources to make the program a success, they can be a valuable part of your safety program.

 

New App to Measure Heat Stress Risk

As we start gearing up for warmer weather, it's important to shift gears and begin considering the risk of heat stress on employees as well. The AIHA has made an app available to help employers keep tabs of the risk of heat stress. The app is available for both iOS and Android, can monitor multiple locations for heat stress risk, and can send alerts if heat stress is elevated in any monitored location.

We also downloaded this app to see how it works, and it is very intuitive. It takes you through a set of questions upon start up, including the work hours to be monitored, which location(s), and whether you'd classify the work being done as "light, moderate, heavy, or very heavy" with examples of work for each category supplied. 

If you would like to start using the app as a tool in your heat stress risk reduction bucket, you can search for the app called "AIHA Heat Stress" in your app store.

 

Telecom Training & Safety Becomes Technical Training & Safety

If you attended our conference last month, then you already know an exciting development: We have changed our name from Telecom Training & Safety to Technical Training & Safety. This change reflects a shift in terminology in the industry since TT&S' inception and better reflects our organizational goals.

 Please let us know if you have any questions!

A conference of technical education and skills improvement with fun, socializing, and prizes!

The future of the broadband industry was on display at the 2025 TT&S Annual Conference & Vendor Showcase!

Taking place at The Bismarck Hotel from February 18-20, 2025, the event saw its second best attendance ever, including a small group from far outside our region.

Tuesday

The conference opened in the Bismarck Hotel's Missouri Ballroom with a pre-show product showcase for exhibitors to highlight who they are and/or the products they sell. Zyxel went beyond that with a short presentation to attendees about their company and products. They provide Wi-Fi, fiber, and other equipment and services to the broadband industry.

An announcement was also made during the opening about TT&S--we recently changed our name and logo. Telecom Training & Safety is now Technical Training & Safety to better reflect the changes in the industry that we serve.

Kicking off the main event was our keynote speaker, Dr. William Aderholdt of Grand Farm, who explained how broadband is serving ag industry advancements. The detailed levels of technology that farmers can use to plan crops, spraying, and managing the soil require a lot of infrastructure, especially for large acreage farms, in terms of Wi-Fi, drones, sensors, and more. Advances in technology and our broadband services aid in food production around the world, and Grand Farm is implementing all the resources available. The future will require all that our industry has to offer!

From the opening presentations, attendees moved into the Dakota Ballroom for the vendor social. Not only were attendee numbers up, but our vendor room was full!

While visiting with exhibitors at their booths, attendees enjoyed free beer and snacks, and even some free drinks at the cash bar thanks to the social sponsors for the event: Ditch Witch of ND, ReadiTech Engineering, Precision Underground, Power & Tel, and MP Nexlevel.

one night of door prizes
from TT&S and the vendors!

Our third annual Tech Wars contest took place at the Tuesday vendor social with three 3-person teams competing in cat 5 termination, fiber splicing, and a time deduction bean bag toss. The winning team was from SRT Communications with second place going to BEK Communications and third place going to United Communications. Congratulations to the winners!

TT&S and its vendors also gave away many door prizes during each vendor social. The time was filled with calling out numbers and handing out prizes ranging from gift cards to sporting gear to appliances and electronics. (All winners must be present to win.) Half the prizes were given out during the Tuesday social, along with a BruMate cooler. The cooler drawing is based on filling out an exhibitor bingo card with stamps from vendors.

Wednesday

After a filling buffet breakfast Wednesday morning, attendees were off to the breakout sessions to learn something new to help them on the job. Sessions included soft skills like Excel and customer service and technical skills in fiber optics, Wi-Fi and networking, advanced locating, and even battery safety and AI.

While attendees were busy in breakout sessions in the Governors Room and Missouri Ballroom, TT&S hosted high school students from across the state for the Connecting the World: Introduction to the Broadband Services Industry Mini-Conference for Students in the Dakota Ballroom. Several TT&S member companies sponsored students and chaperones from their areas.

Students were introduced to networking by Andrew Walding, owner and instructor from Cellstream, in his session "A Day in the Life of Your Internet Packets: How the Internet Works." Following that, a panel of TT&S member company HR Managers and technicians and two BSC telecommunications instructors answered questions and engaged the students with information about the broadband company workplaces, including training opportunities, wages, and benefits, and the company cultures.

At noon, everyone came together in the hotel Courtyard for a delicious hot meal featuring BBQ beef brisket and breaded chicken breast with sauces, vegetables, baked potatoes, salad, and a variety of pies and cheesecakes. While everyone enjoyed the meal, TT&S recognized special accomplishments by member company employees, particularly those who prove safe driving skills by reaching specific levels of miles driven without a serious accident.

Attendees finished out the afternoon breakout sessions with many returning presenters and new presenters. Some of our presenters were juggled to fit in the schedule in both the main conference and student mini-conference events, switching between afternoon or morning with students and regular attendee sessions.

Afternoon hands-on fiber optics stations for students were hosted by Steve Wolles of AFL, Sean Kelly of Light Brigade, Mike Lamb of OFS and Larry Robbert of PLP, and Andrew Degidio of Sumitomo Electric. This hands-on portion was mentioned in the February 28, 2025, BPS Community Newsletter promoting Career and Technical Education Month with a picture of Andrew from Sumitomo.

After a heavy day of learning, high school students had the option of a tour at Dakota Carrier Network before heading home while attendees wound down with drinks and snacks at the Wednesday vendor social. At the social, the last of the door prizes were given out, along with a Yeti cooler.

The third annual TT&S Cornhole Tournament also took place at the Wednesday social with the top three teams all going home with prizes. TT&S gave trophies and a set of boards and bags to each member of the winning team, The Ringers. The second place team, Master Blasters, took home trophies. However, since they were vendors who had wanted to get in on the fun, they left the prize for second place to go to a third place team. A third place play-off was held, and the bag sets went to the DCT team. Congratulations to all! We hope everyone had a fun time.

Jane Wigen of NTCA
closes out the 2025 conference

Thursday

The final day was a day to sit and relax a bit. After a hearty breakfast, the final two sessions took place. Special Agent Luke Kapella of the ND Bureau of Criminal Investigations presented his "Drug of Abuse" session. In that, he shared warning signs of illicit drug issues when going onto the premises of customers.

After Special Agent Kapella, one more speaker closed out the conference. For 2025, instead of holding her retirement planning overview as a breakout session with limited space, Jane Wigen, the NTCA rep for our region, was the closing speaker for all attendees with a very informative presentation on planning for a solid financial future and retirement.

The conference closed out as a success with many learning opportunities for attendees to improve their knowledge for their jobs, along with time to socialize over drinks and games.

We also enjoyed meeting students from across the state and giving them the opportunity to see what our industry does for the world. The future of our broadband is in the hands of young men and women like those who attended the student mini-conference. TT&S hopes the event inspired them to consider this important industry as a future career path. Maybe some day we'll see them attending the main conference as broadband company employees!

Thank you to everyone who contributed to the success of this event! We hope you'll join us again in 2026!

Safety Incentives: The good, the bad, the ugly

 

Does your company have safety incentives?

Maybe the term "safety incentives" is intimidating. Do you recognize employees who demonstrate safe behaviors? Are your employees recognized during TT&S' conference for safe driving?

If you can say yes to either of these, then you have safety incentives. Good for you!

Trying to have any kind of safety incentive is evidence of management's commitment to safety, which is an absolutely essential component to an effective safety program. 

That being said, not all safety incentives are created equal. There are some that can really bolster your program and give you more information about how to improve for the future. And then, there are some that can actually damage the program. Let's take a look at a few examples.

Very common mistake: Days since last accident countdowns

We've all seen a sign, lots of times in a maintenance shop, counting down the days since the last accident or incident. The good about this strategy is that it does boost safety awareness, so it's not all bad. However, if you're looking to step up your program and follow best practices, it's not the best way forward. These signs and any other incentives given to employees for a certain time period spent without any incidents drives down incident reporting. And believe it or not, that's a bad thing.

Because of things like these incident countdown signs, employees may not want to report an incident so they don't disappoint coworkers or supervisors. They may keep an incident to themselves, or even an injury that they initially don't feel is too bad, but worsens over time and becomes in need of more treatment. They also may not feel free to report near misses, which could repeat and end up injuring someone.

This flavor of safety incentive can come in a few different forms:

- Days since last accident sign posted

- Employee annual / quarterly goal about not having any injuries on the job

- Pressure from management on low incident reporting numbers

 A better way forward - "Good catch" programs

Rather than pressuring employees to keep incidents down, an alternative is to recognize employees who report incidents, near misses, or any other safety concerns. These are often called "Good Catch" programs. It can be as simple as recognizing the employee during an all-company or safety meeting.

This requires a lot of messaging and modeling to employees to become successful, especially if you're transitioning from a "No Incidents" culture to "Good Catch." Employees will be hesitant to come forward for a while, so you may have to dig deep to begin with to get the system going. If someone has questions about a paint they're using and whether they need to use PPE? Great - that's a "good catch." If they joined a safety walkaround and pointed out a potential hazard: "Good catch!"

Examples of ways to implement a program like this:

- Incorporate into employee annual / quarterly goals opportunities for "good catches," such as:

    - Joining a safety walkaround

    - Evaluating a routine work process for hazards

    - Participating in a job hazard analysis

- Sometimes a specific incentive can help, too. What about a gift card? 

The important thing is to NEVER punish employees for reporting incidents (except in the most obviously negligent cases), and to PRAISE a ton for bringing up a "good catch."

Again, if you already have a safety incentive system, that's a great start! If it's more weighted toward the "No Incidents" side of things, consider making some tweaks to make it more palatable for employees to report "Good Catches."