A friend of mine invited me on a motorcycle getaway in the mountains. He’s got multiple bikes and all the gear. “You’ve still got your license, right?” he asked.
“Of course I do . . .” I replied: In Alberta, a motorcycle license never expires. I've also completed a motorcycle-riding skills course. But I haven’t operated a motorcycle in over 20 years. So, even though I am trained and licensed, my skills have deteriorated to the point where I am no longer qualified. I declined the invitation.
The principle of "licensed versus qualified" holds true in safety-intensive tasks. We cannot rely solely on a license, training, or “grandfathering” to determine who’s qualified to work safely.
Skills deterioration is a known health and safety hazard. As such, we’ve got to do our due diligence to ensure people are qualified and competent. Here are few actions you can take to control the hazard of skill deterioration:
1. Focus on the equipment and tools that require a high-level of skill to operate safely.
2. Create in-house qualification checklists, set rules for their consistent use, and then use them to verify ability.
3. Set reasonable requalification durations and enforce them rigorously.
4. Keep comprehensive, up-to-date records of who has been in-house qualified to do what.
Skills deteriorate for many reasons. Knowing this, due diligence is required to maintain safe, productive workplaces.
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