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I am self taught on all tools never had training on any tools no one has ever said anything.
Ive been in business now 22 years anyone who work for me i show them how to use lawnmowers strimmers i do all the hedge trimming we dont use chainsaws
Hope this helps
If you're an employer you will have a Duty of Care to ensure employees are not using gear they are not competent with.
The Statuoary training is clear, including Puwer and other Acts in that training and 'tickets' need to be gained.
Lantra and similar training associations 'blur' the line and imply it's a must to be fully trained and certifcated (that's their business model......) on all gear but in reality it's just a means of measuring the level & quality of training given and making money.
H&S, Manual Handling, First Aid etc should be part of employee training by a competent / experienced person and it recorded against each employee and you need to honestly ask yourself if you can deliver that level/quality of training. I know I can't.
I've not see any mandatory requiremet in respect of Strimmers (clearing saws - yes) although a level of training would be wise and/or RAs performed.
If you tender for any commercial business you will almost certainly be asked to confirm your H&S Policy, training history and so on or you use H&S Accreditation services like SafeContractor, CHAS etc.
Still, 'On the Job' training is valuable by a trained and/or competent person. We do it via a 'tail gate' meeting if we've got new gear to use or a problem's been identified. It's then recorded - we keep a big chart on the Notice Board - with each topic signed off. We add in some hot drinks and dognuts to make it enjoyable hour or so. Also a good time to catch up when guys may not see each other for days or weeks due to schedules.
It's easy to poo-poo all this as unnecessary - especially if a single person/sole trader type of business (or if focused on small resi works) as there are less responsibilities to consider (ie only yourself in a closed work area) .... until an injury, accident or damage occurs - then the Insurers and HSE will get involved to 'police' it ....
Another to consider is that staff respond well to training opportunities especially if it lets them grow in experience and their roles - money is not everything ....
The employee is my son
I was directly replying to the OPs question.
No probs
I was lucky when i started out finding a responsible dealer who took his customers ( both Trade and public ) through the motions his view was the book stopped with him in the event of injury or user error .
Now you can buy a machine online which comes with a bottle of oil which sometimes holds more volume than the machine is designed to hold .
People are now left to thier own devices it seems and the risk of injury is not always obvious , Employers must have sleepless nights no matter how responsible the odds always seem to be stacked against them , There always seems to be some organisation creaming it off thier enterprising spirit .
There are so many different strimmer situations requiring different levels of judgement and competence which the basics cannot possibly cover .
Sometimes its the rule makers who need assessing they change the rules to suit .
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