SAFETY MOMENT, JANUARY 8

Keep exits clear and unlocked

See today's safety moment How to give a safety moment

Safety moment, January 8

Offices feel safe, so hazards are easy to ignore. Trips over cords and boxes, falls from chairs used as ladders, tipping file cabinets and blocked exits can all hurt people who work at a desk. A few small habits go a long way.

SAFETY MOMENT

January 8

The hazard

Offices feel safe, so hazards are easy to ignore. Trips over cords and boxes, falls from chairs used as ladders, tipping file cabinets and blocked exits can all hurt people who work at a desk. A few small habits go a long way.

The action

In general industry, exit routes must be free and unobstructed, and no materials or equipment may be placed in them, even temporarily. Employees must be able to open an exit route door from the inside at all times without keys, tools or special knowledge (29 CFR 1910.36(d)(1)). Never park carts, boxes or a printer in a hallway that leads to an exit, and never stack anything in front of an electrical panel. (29 CFR 1910.37(a)(3))

ASK THE CREW

Is there anything in our walkways or exit routes right now that should not be there?

From the talk: Office safety. Read it in full, free, with the questions and the sign-in sheet.

HOW TO USE IT

How to give a safety moment

Gather the crew where they work, before the shift or the meeting starts. Read the hazard out loud.
Ask the question and let two or three people answer. What they say about their own work counts for more than what you read.
Name the action and point to one place on today's job where it applies, so everyone knows what to do differently.
Write the date and the names on a sign-in sheet.

A safety moment is short and does not replace the full talk. When you want to go through a topic with the crew, pick a free toolbox talk.

PRINT AND EDIT

365 safety moments, $29

One moment for every day of the year in the same format as this one: the hazard, the action, the question and the source talk with its citation. Print a page a day or show a slide.

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Each moment links back to its cited toolbox talk

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