Workplace Health and Safety

The Importance of Toolbox Meetings!

You don’t have to be involved in the construction or mining industries to have toolbox meetings in your workplace.

Toolbox meetings may have begun as a way for construction workers to discuss projects, workplace issues, and company policies, but they have evolved into much more than that!

Regular toolbox meetings will allow your team members to raise and discuss a variety of issues that they may not normally have the opportunity to discuss. One of the best things about toolbox meetings is that it allows multiple people to discuss issues at once and often gives managers and team leaders a unique look at what their team member’s opinions are.

While someone may come up with an idea or have an issue, dealing with them one-on-one limits input from other stakeholders, when your entire team or company is going back and forth, you’re getting access to multiple points of view from employees that may not regularly contribute or participate in discussions.

Some of the things which could be discussed at regular toolbox meetings include:

• Current Projects – including timelines to completion, the status of different areas, problems, or issues teams are facing, ways to improve the project, and problems that have been overcome.
• Workplace Policies & Procedures – Workplace issues such as company policies, procedures, and employee grievances.
• Improvements & Suggestions – Different ways that the company could improve productivity.
• Feedback from the Company to Employees – It’s a great opportunity for the company and management to give feedback and news back to employees and team members in person.
• Satisfy WHS Consultation Requirements – Part of your WHS requirements is to interact and consult with employees. Documented toolbox meetings are a great way to meet this requirement.

One of the great things about toolbox meetings is that they can be scaled to different sizes to suit your business. You could make your toolbox meeting department-based, project-based, or area-based. If you are going to make toolbox meetings part of your workplace culture, be sure to take notes during the meeting, give feedback about any issues or problems raised, and be consistent with the scheduling of regular meetings.

If you’re looking for a new way to interact with your employees, then a toolbox meeting could be just what you or your company has been looking for!