Safety Tip: Asking the Right Questions

Reprinted from GRAIN JOURNAL March/April 2018 Issue

Identifying hazards is a critical part of the safety process. There are nine common hazards present in many workplaces. Asking the right questions can help identify these hazards.

Consider asking the following questions prior to your next job or task (see chart to left).

Hierarchy of Controls

If one or more of these hazards are present, use the hierarchy of controls to address each hazard.

If one or more of the nine common hazards are present, use the hierarchy of controls to address each hazard.

The hierarchy of controls consists of five control methods: elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls, and personal protective equipment (PPE).

Elimination involves physically removing the hazard from the work environment.

Substitution involves replacing the hazard, for example replacing a hazardous chemical with a less hazardous or safe chemical.

Engineering controls involve isolating workers from the hazard with the use of barriers such as machine guards.

Administrative controls involve making changes to the way people work. Most commonly this involves job rotation or establishment of safe work procedures. Other effective administrative controls may involve the use of checklists to perform tasks or pre-shift meetings to identify the highest risk task of the day.

The last and least effective control is the use of PPE.

Source: Joe Mlynek is president of Progressive Safety Services LLC, Gates Mills, OH; joe.mlynek@progressivesafety.us; and content creation expert for Safety Made Simple Inc., Olathe, KS; joe@safetymadesimple.com