Toolbox Talks Toolbox Talk Training Why its Worth It!

Safety toolbox talks are less formal and shorter than safety meetings and training sessions, and they are designed to reinforce safety training and information on a particular topic. Without constant reminders about safety, employees tend to forget, get sloppy, take risks, and have accidents. But running safety talks time after time can lose some of the spark as an effective training tool. Many times, the safety talks miss the mark, and safety training is forgotten as soon as the talk is over. How can we avoid safety talks that don't work? What can we do to get the most effective worker learning for the time, energy, and dollars spent in safety training? There are some basic steps you can follow to give an effective safety talk: Focus on one subject per talk. A safety talk that rambles or loses focus by discussing several different subjects will not hold your employees attention. Choose a subject that involves as many people as possible, and confine the presentation and suggestions to that single topic. It is more effective to teach people how to handle a single problem at a time so they can eliminate that one hazard. Avoid such general statements as Do better with your housekeeping. A safety talk needs to tell employees exactly what to do. For instance, say You need to make sure the aisles are clear of maintenance equipment, or Clean up spills as soon as they happen. If you discuss the same general topic on a regular basishousekeeping, for examplepin down the subject for each safety talk to specifics, such as the danger of discarding sharp items in wastebaskets, or the unsafe use of electrical cords and extensions. Always include time for attendees to ask questions.

Why Are Toolbox Talks Important?

Toolbox talks are a great refresher, and keep your employees abreast of changes in regulations, safety procedures, equipment, personal protective equipment (PPE), and job assignments and responsibilities. Refresher training is required by law on some topics, in which case planned safety talks are a convenient way to go over required training.

Safety Toolbox Talk Examples and Other Tools to Help YOU!

Safety.BLR.com has practical compliance analysis and hundreds of toolbox talks, as well as other training resources in several time-saving formats: Confined Spaces toolbox talk Electrical Safety talk Hazard Communication Safety talk Audio safety talks Training tracker forms Refresher training outlines Training checklists

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Compliance Curriculum: Confined Spaces
Understanding and applying OSHA standards is at the heart of any safety and health program. This white paper is a review of permitrequired confined space (29 CFR 1910.146), a widely applied and frequently cited standard. The article aims to provide a helpful overview of the requirements, as well as some compliance tips to give your programs a boost, or to help you get one off the ground. There's nothing new about confined spaces or their hazards. In Roman times, the emperor Trajan sentenced criminals to clean sewers, an occupation known to be particularly dangerous. OSHA defines a confined space as one whose size and shape allows an employee to enter and perform assigned work but is not designed to be occupied continuously and has limited or restricted means for getting in and out. Examples include tanks, storage bins, vessels, silos, hoppers, vaults, and pits.

Definition, Please

A permit-required confined space has the potential to:

Confined spaces can be awkward and uncomfortable to work in. What's more, hazards are generally even more severe when they exist in confined spaces. That's why OSHA requires special precautions and even permits for a great many confined-space tasks. Definition OSHA defines a permit-required confined space as one that has one or more of the following: 1. A hazardous atmosphere that could cause a person to become ill, incapacitated, unable to escape without aid, or even to die. The atmosphere may be hazardous due to: o Flammable gas, vapor, or mist levels more than 10 percent above the substance's lower flammable limit. o Airborne combustible dust at or above that limit. (OSHA notes that "this concentration may be approximated as a condition that obscures vision at a distance of 5 feet or less.") o An oxygen concentration below 19.5 percent or above 23.5 percent. o A concentration of any substance for which a dose or a permissible exposure limit (PEL) in Subpart G or Z of Part 1910 could result in employee exposure in excess of such dose or PEL. o Any other atmospheric condition immediately dangerous to life or health. An engulfment potential that could lead to a worker being immersed and buried or smothered by a liquid or a flowing solid, like sand or grain. A potentially entrapping design such as walls that converge inward or a floor that slopes and tapers down. Any other recognized serious health or safety hazard -- such as falls or excessive heat or noise.

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Cause death, illness, incapacitation, or difficulty escaping without aid due to dangerous levels of flammable or combustible substances, oxygen, or other hazards. Bury or smother a worker in the space's liquid or "flowable" solid contents. Entrap a worker with a design such as walls that converge inward or a floor that slopes and tapers down. Present any other recognized serious health or safety hazard.

Employer Requirements OSHA's permit-required confined-space regulation requires employers to develop and follow a written confined-space entry program, which "shall be available for inspection by employees and their authorized representatives." The program provides for determining and stating the conditions that will allow safe space entry -- and verifying that those conditions will be maintained while anyone works in the space. Such work will thus be allowed only when the space meets listed criteria and after obtaining a permit that lists specific information about the space and entry. It is also the employer's responsibility to:

Train employees to safely perform confined-space tasks Develop safety procedures, including rescue plans and rescue personnel. Identify and test the atmosphere in a confined space that is to be entered. Retest the atmosphere in the space before workers enter it -- with the authorized entrant and an authorized representative allowed to observe. Flush, ventilate, or otherwise eliminate or control atmospheric hazards before allowing workers in the space. Keep unauthorized employees out of such spaces by the posting of signs or other warnings, the use of barricades, or other appropriate means.

Roles and Responsibilities To help ensure worker safety in permit-required confined spaces, OSHA has also described several key employee roles.

Authorized entrants may enter only after the air is tested and found safe. Once in the space, these workers must be vigilant for any change in conditions. They must be familiar with the potential hazards listed on the permit and the signs and symptoms of lack of oxygen and other risks. Authorized entrants must know what equipment to use and how to use it. That includes personal protective gear, tools needed for the task, equipment for communicating with the attendant, and some kind of personal retrieval system. According to OSHA, each authorized entrant has to use a chest or full body harness attached to a retrieval line. A wristlet system may be used only if the employer can demonstrate that other systems are impractical or dangerous. Also, despite the protections /in place, work inside the space should be completed as efficiently and quickly as possible. Workers should be instructed to leave the space immediately if they suspect trouble, or if the attendant gives an order or sounds an alarm. Attendants must remain on duty outside an occupied permit-required confined space. They must study the permit to understand the potential hazards of the space and the signs and symptoms of trouble. An attendant must:

Monitor and count who's in and who's outside the space. Stay in touch with authorized entrant(s) working inside. Keep unauthorized people away from an occupied space. Order immediate evacuation if the entrant shows signs of hazardous exposure, if the attendant can't perform duties safely, or if a situation outside the space could endanger workers within. Summon rescue and emergency services when needed to evacuate workers.

Entry supervisors oversee the operation. They make sure testing and other permit requirements are met, then they sign the permit so workers can enter. The entry supervisor also must be familiar with the hazards in the space, ensure the availability of rescue and emergency services, and stop work in the space and cancel the permit when the task is completed or when conditions develop that make the work unsafe. Rescue and emergency service personnel may work for the employer, or for an outside service. But it's always the job of the employer with the permit-required confined space to be sure rescuers are ready, willing, and able to handle their duties. Reminders for Employees Doing your part as an employer is just one component in a program to keep workers safe during confined-space work. It's equally important that employees do their part, including participating in training and applying what they've learned. Encourage your workers to understand and observe these basic safety precautions that can help keep them safe. Employees should:

Plan tasks and assemble equipment so work in the confined space can be performed quickly. Be sure any steam, water, heat, or power lines going into the space are cut off and locked and tagged. Not enter the space if they feel unwell or have been using alcohol or any drugs. Pay close attention to how they feel while in the space. Leave immediately if they have trouble breathing or feel tired, dizzy, nauseated, etc. Avoid taking food, drinks, or cigarettes into the space. Make sure the space is adequately ventilated.

Vigilance and Vigor Hearing conservation and permit-required confined-space programs don't have a great deal in common in terms of the hazards they address. But compliance with each of these bedrock OSHA standards requires a great deal of vigilance and vigor -- by you, as the employer, and by your employees. Although hearing loss is not a "life and death" matter like asphyxiation in a confined space, adherence with both sets of OSHA requirements can have a dramatic impact on the life and health of your greatest business asset: your workforce.

How to Conduct Safety And Health Self-Audits

Systematic evaluation of your safety and health situation is an important facet of your program. Don't wait for accidents to happen before you investigate and inspect. Safety and health consciousness tends to slip, and it's your job to be sure that that doesn't happen. A well-prepared and well-executed safety audit/inspection program can make a substantial difference in accident prevention. What's the objective of a safety inspection program? The discovery--through specific, methodical auditing, checking, or inspection procedures--of conditions and work practices that lead to job accidents and industrial illnesses, then reporting these for correction. Stated more positively, it's checking to see that things are in good shape. This is at the heart of successful accident-prevention programs fostered by forward-thinking safety management. Most organizations with successful safety programs have well-organized safety audit programs. It's just that simple. In addition to its direct accident-prevention role, the inspection program: Informs management of the "safety status" of the organization Uses inspection time most efficiently Provides a consistent method of recording observations Reduces the possibility of important items being overlooked. As one plant engineer put it, safety inspection tours are like preventive maintenance--every piece of equipment wears down and deteriorates over time--and those pieces of equipment have to be checked regularly. Similarly, employee work procedures fall into routines over time-some of them unsafe routines--and these practices need regular re-evaluation to make sure that safe work procedures are followed. Here's what you'll find in this guidance document--we'll discuss: Effective safety inspections and their role in industry today Some of the side benefits that a good safety audit program can have for your organization and its safety program Areas in the typical manufacturing, maintenance, or service facility that need attention under an inspection program Suggestions on how to prioritize the results of safety inspections considering the time and funds allocations of your firm What management must understand about a safety audit program. A comprehensive checklist of potential manufacturing, service, maintenance, and office hazards from which you can tailor a safety checklist for your organization. What Are the Purposes of Effective Safety Inspections? Why should you be doing audits and inspections? Here are a number of objectives: Spotlight unsafe conditions and equipment Focus on unsafe work practices or behavior trends before they lead to injuries Reveal the need for new safeguards Involve many more employees in the safety program Help sell the safety program within the organization thereby enabling you to: -- Re-evaluate the safety standards of the organization -- Compare safety results against safety plans

-- Gauge the relative success of safety training efforts -- Anticipate problems in advance of any OSHA inspection. Planning a Safety Audit/Inspection Program A good safety audit program does not come easily. The effort requires careful planning and diligent preparation. The program unfolds after you decide what you want to cover in your inspections. The following questions should be considered in laying plans for a safety audit program in your organization: What departments or operations will be covered in the inspection tour? What items or activities will be checked? How often will the inspections be carried out? Who will conduct the tours? How will the inspections be conducted? What type of follow-up activity will be put in place so that corrections are, in fact, made? Does management understand that hazards or unsafe work practices will need to be corrected and that this will require human resources, management and engineering expertise? General vs. Specific The first question, experts in the safety audit field generally agree, should be: Do you want to conduct a general inspection or do you want to conduct a special type of inspection? General inspections are considered comprehensive reviews of all safety and industrial health exposures in a given area or even a complete factory. Special inspections (sometimes called targeted inspections) deal with specific exposures in a given unit, section, or even plantwide. Such an inspection might focus on electrical hazards in machinery used for manufacturing, or the hazards that may have generated back injuries as recorded in the OSHA 300 log or noticed during a review of workers' compensation reports. It could involve the branch's compliance with the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard and the development of a checklist for compliance with the principal elements of that standard. A good inspection program can include both the special and the general type of inspections. For example, one month a program could involve a complete plant tour for safety hazards; the next month the inspection program could focus on personal protective equipment and how it is used on the job. OSHA encourages such a mixed approach, believing that a combination of the two types of programs can strengthen a plant's accident-prevention effort.