Bridging the digital divide in workplace safety education

A digital divide exists in that vulnerable workers (younger, older, underemployed, precariously employed, immigrants) employed by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) do not have access to the safety knowledge and support resources that workers employed by large enterprises have. This project is intended to investigate the effectiveness of using e-learning products as the form of digital technologies, in order to deliver process safety education. A broad-based e-learning introduction to the preventive aspects of Process Safety Management (PSM) will be developed and made available for workers and employers in small and medium sized businesses. An electronic survey will be conducted before and after completion of the e-learning modules. This data will be analyzed for correlations with employment data from Statistics Canada and injury data from the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board. The findings will enable the design of more effective e-learning solutions to bridge the digital divide in safety education and reduce workplace injuries.