Training and development programmes for mineworkers can promote growth, life skills, and better job satisfaction, but these programmes can also be costly, digital learning company The Training Room Online mining learning specialist Jim Devlin tells Mining Weekly, adding that e-learning programmes can make a significant positive difference when it comes to upskilling mineworkers.
He states that training that uses simple pen-and-paper and multiple-choice tests does not always convey the entire picture and, in safety training, this can have tragic consequences for mineworkers.
“The e-learning approach to training and development enables cost-effective, yet highly engaging, staff training. While most of us are not qualified to resolve mining challenges such as the wage debate, what we do know is that there are serious problems around health, safety and efficiency within the mining sector,” he says.
Devlin points out that e-learning assists in easier retention of the subject matter as the learner moves at his or her own pace, noting that e-learning programmes are tailored to suit the specific needs of each target audience.
“e-Learning is also measurable – if you cannot measure, you cannot manage – and it also ensures that each learner’s records are captured,” he says, adding that e-learning is also sustainable, as change is constant in the mining industry and e-learning offers the flexibility required when mining criteria change.
He notes that the major benefits of e-learning include a reduction in training time, a platform for professionalism and consistency of the training message, cost effectiveness and a multimedia approach to learning.
Devlin comments that training is of vital importance to upskilling workers in the mining industry and challenges such as language use and educational levels of the workforce are a major concern.
“Ongoing training is another challenge owing to the organic nature of mining – and e-learning caters for that need,” he notes.
He adds that mining is hazardous and the most important challenge in the mining industry is ensuring that the safety and health of everyone are not compromised in any way.
“Human error remains the biggest obstacle to an injury-free workplace – continuous, engaging and focused training remain the overriding priority for all mining companies. Government should facilitate a climate of support in creating world-class mining
.