How Employers Should Approach Safety Training as Gen Z Enters the Trades
Forty-two percent of Generation Z adults are working in or pursuing a blue-collar or skilled trade job, according to a Resume Builder survey, including 37% of respondents with a bachelor’s degree. These types of jobs have much to offer. Respondents believe they offer better long-term prospects, higher earning opportunities and less chance of being replaced by artificial intelligence (AI), among numerous other attractions.
For employers, the shift may help fill urgent workforce gaps in construction, manufacturing, transportation and other hands-on industries. However, as an influx of new employees takes on higher-hazard jobs, a well-oiled approach to risk management is imperative for employers.
The concern is less about age than experience, says Matt Zender, senior vice president of workers comp strategy for AmTrust. “It’s not the generation, it’s the tenure within the workforce that drives the risk,” he says. “A younger worker is less familiar with the hazards associated with that workplace; they have limited experience in recognizing risk signals; in many cases, they overestimate their physical abilities because they’re young; and they may be reluctant to ask questions and appear inexperienced.”
The highest exposure exists in the first few months of employment, especially during onboarding. “Some of these jobs tend to have inherently high turnover,” Zender says. “As an employer, you can feel like you’re on a hamster wheel, as you put effort into onboarding only for people to leave in three months.”
Constant onboarding can lead to recurring risk exposure, “but that’s where the opportunity lies,” Zender says. This constant need allows employers to build proficiency and efficiency at onboarding. “The more consistently employers approach workers comp risk mitigation from the beginning, the more consistent they can expect the outcome to be,” he says.
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It’s where independent insurance agents can be especially helpful to overwhelmed employers. “Agents can train employers on workforce trends, safety cultures and how to prevent claims—and remind them about the return on investment,” Zender says.
“Employers can’t hire themselves out of safety risk,” Zender says. “They have to engage their way out of it.”
As employers onboard Gen Z workers, safety communication may need to evolve, he says. “While safety standards haven’t changed, there are ways to modernize our delivery. The way generations absorb information certainly needs to be considered.”
Zender encourages video learning, scenario-based learning, and hands-on practice as effective methods of safety training. “With younger generations’ technological abilities, consider those tools because they can help you distribute a message consistently in a way that will resonate with a younger workforce,” he says.
Especially for younger workers, “the best onboarding programs don’t just teach what the job is, they help employees learn how to work safely and confidently in that environment,” Zender says. In his experience, Gen Z workers “want to understand the why behind a rule so they can apply it and orient their approach around it,” he adds.
Ultimately, while the influx of inexperienced workers can present a challenge for workers comp clients, their needs are nothing new, he says. “Committed employees in every generation want to feel like they’re a part of something and Gen Z is no different,” he adds. “They want to contribute. They want to be successful.”
AnneMarie McPherson Spears is IA news editor.
