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New Online Hazard Identification Training Tool from OSHA

There are many different ways to provide safety training, from formal lectures to less formal toolbox talks. But training may be most effective when it’s interactive.

In that spirit, the US’s Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) has released a new Hazard Identification Training Tool that’s interactive, online and game-based.

The training tool is designed for small business owners, workers and others interested in learning the core concepts of hazard identification. It explains the key components of the hazard identification process:

  • Information collection
  • Observation of the workplace
  • Investigation of incidents
  • Employee participation
  • Prioritizing hazards.

After using this tool, users will better understand the process of identifying hazards in their own workplace, says OSHA.

Currently, there are three different scenarios:

  • OSHA Visual Inspection Training, which contains a saw, industrial chemical mixer, scaffolding and fall protection for inspection. In this scenario, users learn how to identify hazards on items found in the workplace, become familiar with typical hazard categories and understand common relationships of hazards to equipment components and operations.
  • Manufacturing Facility, which offers user the option of playing as either the business owner or a worker who’s part of the JHSC in a hovercraft parts manufacturing facility.
  • Construction, in which the user must identify and mitigate hazards to maintain a safe workplace throughout three phases of a construction project.

To view specific workplace operations, OSHA recommends first playing the OSHA Visual Inspection Training scenario, which focuses on the visual inspection component to identify specific hazards as opposed to the larger hazard identification process.

The hazards in each of these scenarios are randomized so a user can play each scenario multiple times with different hazard combinations appearing.

Although the Hazard Identification Training Tool may reference OSHA requirements, the hazard identification process it explains can be used in Canadian workplaces, too. So consider using this tool in your workplace, while supplementing it with information on the applicable OHS requirements for your jurisdiction.