National Forklift Safety Day - Tips for Safety
On June 11th, 2019, the sixth annual National Forklift Safety Day will be held by the Industrial Truck Association (ITA).
The objective of National Forklift Safety Day is to educate individuals on the best practices regarding forklift safety, the importance of operator training and the need for daily equipment checks.
Aside from keeping employees and customers safe, increasing productivity and promoting awareness, OSHA and Department of Labor regulations require operators to be trained and certified to run most powered industrial trucks and aerial equipment, including all types of forklifts.
Only trained and certified individuals can legally operate forklifts. Operator training is the law under OSHA Regulation: 29CFR1910.178(l)
Duties of the employer
Must train
Must evaluate
Must certify
Must retrain when: There is an accident or near-miss. Observed unsafe behavior. Change in equipment or operating conditions
Must reevaluate every 3 years
Benefits of safety training for forklift operators
70% of all industrial accidents are caused by operator error (National Safety Council).
Effective training may reduce accident rates by 25-30% (OSHA).
Following forklift operator training, OSHA found a 61% improvement in operator performance scores (OSHA).
No Underage Operators
Fair Labor Standards Act regulations prohibit people under 18 years old from operating forklifts in non-agricultural settings.
Minimum age for agriculture is 16 years.
Department of Labor forklift sticker can be used to emphasize the message.
To minimize accidents, it is critical to utilize factory-trained and certified instructors. Operator training certification has a three-year expiration. After that, re-evaluation and certification will need to be repeated. Train-the-trainer courses provide knowledge for your qualified personnel to certify operators utilizing your own trainers and materials.
Workplace safety is a top priority at Action Lift, and that’s why we support forklift safety, not only on National Forklift Safety Day—but every day. Promoting forklift safety awareness throughout the year is the best way to prevent forklift accidents and injuries. We offer operator training, train-the-trainer, and service training to our customers at our facility in Pittston, PA, or on-site at your location. Contact us today for a FREE FORKLIFT OPERATOR SAFETY AUDIT.
References:
https://www.indtrk.org/national-forklift-safety-day
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