The majority of new employees have at least two years of work experience before coming to SONOCO. But, regardless of experience, each time a person goes to a new company, they fall into the category of new hire or short service employee (SSE). They are not inexperienced workers, but they are people who might be new to the food service industry, or the offshore work environment.

In previous jobs, these people have learned the correct ways to work safely and efficiently through initial pre-job training and "on-the-job training." They have learned from practice and from those people already experienced in the vocation. Once hired at SONOCO, regardless of the experience the person has, new learning must begin. What does SONOCO do to provide for this new education?

New employees must go through an orientation that includes a physical and a drug screen. New employees are also shown the correct methods to do their jobs safely:

Once offshore, the experienced SONOCO workers must help by passing their knowledge on to the new person. This "on-the-job-training" will help them gain a quicker grasp of their operation and job as soon as possible, making them a more efficient worker and a safer worker.

You should show them the station bill, discuss evacuation procedures, let them know of any hazards of the operation (missing grating, broken tiles, sliding mats, water overflow areas, etc.). New employees must be encouraged to ask questions if they do not know the correct procedure in completing a task.

Over 90% of all injuries are caused by an unsafe act, someone doing something the wrong way. But how many of these injuries happened because the worker did not know the safest method, or smartest way to complete the task, or did not want to ask?

As a "new person," do not become an incident statistic. If you do not know what to do, ASK! As an "old hand", keep a helpful eye on the new employee and answer their questions! The knowledge and experience they gain might help keep you safe, as well.