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Workplace injuries and illnesses can be prevented. The key to achieving safe production is to recognize, assess and control all workplace health and safety hazards.

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Identifying Hazards

Before you can assess the hazards in your workplace, you must ensure that you have done a thorough job of identifying them. Hazards can be identified by various methods, including collecting and reviewing all available information about potential and actual problems in your workplace and by inspecting the workplace. Here are some general guidelines.

1. Get some help – While as the employer, you are legally responsible for conducting the hazard assessment, it is wise to use a team approach. Ideally, the activity should be conducted with the worker and management members of your JHSC who completed Basic Certification Training (firms with 19+ employees). For smaller firms, you and your H&S representative could team up. You may also wish to include others with specific hazard knowledge or expertise on the “assessment team”.
2.

Determine where to begin – You may want to divide your workplace into major work areas or steps in the work flow. Regardless of how you do it, the key is that all areas must be considered for hazards. This includes:

  • Receiving areas
  • Storage areas
  • Processing areas
  • Customer service areas
  • Office areas
  • Areas outside of the workplace (sidewalks, walkways, parking lots, driveways, etc)
3.

Collect and review information – There are many sources of information that you can turn to for help in identifying the hazards in your workplace. Examples include:

  • Hazardous materials inventories and material safety data sheets (MSDSs)
  • Inventories of on-site machinery and equipment and information from manufacturers or suppliers of these items
  • Work flow or process flow information
  • Injury and illness reports for your workplace
  • Accident and incident investigation reports
  • Recommendations made by your JHSC or H&S Representative
  • Results of previous workplace inspections
  • Employee reports about hazards
  • Results of any workplace testing (e.g. air sampling)
  • Results of work refusals or stoppages
  • Maintenance reports
  • Inspection reports and orders from the Ministry of Labour
4. Use a floor plan – A floor plan of your workplace can help you summarize the information you collect. For example, you can mark on the floor plan where accidents and incidents have happened, where chemicals are used and stored, what machines and equipment are used, and where there are special problem areas.
5. Inspect your workplace – Let everyone know you’re doing an inspection. Wear the appropriate personal protective equipment. Be thorough: check the entire area. Talk to your employees about hazards and how they may be controlled. Take detailed notes.

Publications to help you identify hazards in your workplace:

Assessing Workplace Hazards

Once you’ve identified the hazards in your workplace, you are ready to move to the next step – assessment. IAPA has developed a workplace hazard assessment form specifically for this purpose (see Working Conditions Assessment section below). Use the form to record each hazard that you’ve identified and then assess it for its significance.

A sound knowledge and evaluation of all workplace conditions is the basis for controlling health and safety hazards. Regularly assess workplace conditions. Thorough periodic workplace inspections are necessary to ensure safe workplace conditions and, consequently, safe production. Also assess the impact of any proposed changes in process, equipment or materials.

Assess all solvents, raw materials, and other chemicals for potential hazards. Ensure that material safety data sheets (MSDS) are obtained from suppliers, and that all containers of hazardous materials are properly labelled.

Identify all processes that have the potential to generate fumes, gases, mists, dusts and vapours,noise and heat or cold.

Rate all identified hazards based on severity (high, medium or low), frequency (number of workers exposed, how often and for how long) and probability of injury or loss. This will enable you to establish a priority for the action needed to eliminate or minimize hazards.

IAPA Free Downloads

Hazard Control

Hazards are any practice, behaviour, condition, or combination of these that can cause injury or illness in people, or damage to property. Hazards can be grouped into “safety” hazards and “health” hazards as outlined here:

Safety Hazard Categories
Basic safety hazard categories include:

1.

Material Handling – manual material handling can involve lifting, carrying, lowering, pushing and pulling. All of these activities can lead to muscle strains, tears and pulls of the back, shoulders, arms and abdomen.

Mechanical material handling can involve such devices as forklift trucks, conveyors, cranes, and hand carts and trucks. These devices can introduce many hazards including accidental contact with moving equipment or parts, loads, or electricity.

Handling of hazardous materials such as corrosives, flammables and reactives is another key area. Exposure can cause serious harm to people and extensive damage to property.
2.

Machine Hazards – Any machine can be a hazard, especially those with moving parts that can get tangled in a worker’s clothes or come into contact with a worker’s body. Here are some examples:

  • Workers may be crushed if they get caught in rotating shafts, belts or pulleys
  • Body parts may be injured or severed by presses, blades and saws
  • Workers may be struck by flying projectiles from machines

 
3.

Energy Hazards – Workers can be seriously injured by the sudden movement of machine components, electrical shock or other releases of energy when they are adjusting or maintaining equipment. Energy sources include: electricity, steam, heat, pneumatic or hydraulic pressure and gravity as well as mechanical and chemical energy.
4.

Work Practice Hazards – Failure to have or to follow safe work practices is a significant cause of injuries. Performing work safely in accordance with established safe work procedures is a fundamental element in the control of safety hazards. Employers, supervisors and workers all share a responsibility in this.
5.

Confined Space Hazards – Confined spaces are work spaces where hazardous gases, vapours, dusts or fumes may build up or where an oxygen-deficient atmosphere may be created. Examples include: storage tanks, vaults, pits, vats, silos, pipelines, ducts and tunnels. Other hazards of confined spaces include: difficulty of entry and exit and working in awkward spaces, poor walking surfaces, poor visibility, and extremes of temperatures and noise.

 

Health Hazard Categories
Basic health hazard categories include:

1.

Physical Hazards – Physical hazards are forms of energy that can harm the body if exposed. Examples include: noise, vibration, temperature extremes (hot or cold), and radiation. The effects of exposure can respectively include: temporary or permanent hearing loss; damage to the small blood vessels and nerves; heat cramps, exhaustion and stroke; frostbite and hypothermia; cancer and eye damage.
2.

Chemical Hazards – Chemical hazards can take the form of solids, liquids, vapours, gases, dusts, fumes or mists. They can be inhaled, ingested or absorbed into the body. Examples include: paints, solvents, cleaners, degreasers, acids, and cutting oils. Exposure to chemical hazards can cause irritation, allergic reactions, depression of the nervous system, asphyxia, lung disease and cancer. Some chemicals can also have harmful effects on the reproductive system.
3.

Biological Hazards – Biological hazards are living things or substances produced by living things that can cause illness in humans. These hazards enter the body by inhalation, ingestion or absorption. Examples of biological hazards include: bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites and plants. Effects of exposure include: tuberculosis, tetanus, food poisoning, boils, blood poisoning, ringworm, thrush, hepatitis, mumps, German measles, and rabies.
4.

Ergonomic or Work Design Hazards – Ergonomic hazards arise from the design and organization of work. They can harm the body by placing strain on the musculoskeletal system and overloading the muscles, tendons, joints, ligaments, nerves and blood vessels. Look for ergonomic hazards in: workstation layout an design, tool and equipment design, the work environment, and general work organization.
5.

Stress or Psychosocial Hazards – Workplace stressors can lead to excess stress or distress and have been identified as important factors in many types of illness, including heart disease and high blood pressure. There are two main types of stressors: physical (e.g. noise and vibration) and organizational stressors (e.g. lack of job control, work overload, role uncertainty and conflict, isolation and workplace violence).