Unveiling Misconceptions: Exploring the Complexity Beyond Common Sense – Part I of III
Food Staff Salinas
We supply our clients with highly trained food safety candidates, while emphasizing worker quality over quantity.
In my first food industry job (12 years ago), working as a Sanitation Technician, I remember that before entering the production area, I watched employees wash their hands, put on gloves, and apply sanitizer, rubbing their hands together.
Back then, using my common sense - lacking the appropriate information at the time - I asked myself the following:
“Why wash my hands if I am going to be using sanitizer?"
If I had been informed of the correct procedure, I would understand why relying solely on sanitizer without prior hand washing with soap is not recommended. They should have gathered all new employees in a room for a few minutes to train them on everything related to GMPs, as required by the FDA anyway.
They could have imparted this simple yet compelling message to us:
“If there is dirt or residues on your hands, the sanitizer may not be able to reach all areas of the skin effectively, making it less effective at eliminating germs. Since sanitizer is alcohol-based, it works to kill microorganisms. Washing your hands first with soap and water ensures they are free from residue, allowing the sanitizer to effectively disinfect them."
During my time working as a sanitation technician, I went through similar situations.
I noticed that new employees would arrive and sign a paper saying they were trained in GMPs, but they didn't really receive any training. It's crucial for everyone to understand why our jobs are important, how to do things correctly, and what could go wrong if we don't follow the procedures.
Untrained Consequences: The Cost of Ignorance
Effective training of your employees in food manufacturing or processing facilities could be the key factor that distinguishes your company from a recall or withdrawal.
A recall typically incurs a staggering $10 million in expenses, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. Beyond the financial hit, there's the looming specter of reputational damage, potential lawsuits, customer attrition, and a host of other cascading effects.
Let's not delve too deeply into mathematical figures, but let's break it down:
- $90 (cost per training for each employee) x 600 (number of employees to be trained annually) =
- $54,000 (total annual cost for training all personnel).
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Let's add potential additional expenses:
- Online training platform for employees = $10,000
- Consulting Services = $15,000
- 3 reinforcement sessions scheduled throughout the work season, each session lasting 1 hour. = $36,000
- $10,000 + $15,000 + $36,000 = $61,000 (annual cost)
- $54,000 + $61,000 =
- Total annual expenditure = $115,000
- $10 million divided by $115,000 equals 87.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, from a strategic standpoint, the $10 million budget would allocate resources for employee training over a span of 87 years. This underscores the potential consequences of neglecting employee training, as evidenced by the substantial investment that could have been required for a single product recall due to inadequate training protocols.
"So, bottom line, lack of training is the problem and the answers to the problem are often only excuses. We do not achieve favorable results with excuses, but with action."
Excuses do not yield favorable outcomes; action does.