JSA - Job Safety Analysis
Involve employees – Many will ask, "What is a JSA (Job Safety Analysis)?" Provide training on job safety analysis (also known as a safety audit), and you'll find the JSA job safety process will be more thorough and more easily implemented if the employees have "ownership" of the health and safety procedures.
Indentify Safety Hazards – Review with employees the work site's history of occupational illness and injuries that have happened or nearly occurred. These will indicate where hazard controls need to be added or modified. Recording them on a JSA form (also called a safety audit) will allow both management and employees to remember and act on the health and safety procedures indicated.
Conduct a review of existing health and safety hazards in the workplace – Discuss with employees ideas to eliminate or control each health and safety hazard. If any hazards exist that pose an immediate danger to an employee's life or health, take immediate action implementing hazard controls to protect the worker. Correct simple problems immediately with health and safety procedures...don't wait till the JSA (job safety analysis) is completed. This will free you to focus on the hazards and tasks that require more attention because of their complexity. More information on OSHA safety requirements and hazard assessment and can be found here.
Rank list of jobs and hazards in the order of priority (see Eliminate Hazards in the Workplace) - The jobs with highest occupational illnesses and injury rates must be addressed first. When beginning a JSA (job safety analysis), watch the employee perform the job and list each step as the worker takes it. Describe each action simply but accurately. Include the basic steps, but don't make the list too lengthy to follow. Getting input from other workers who have performed the same job may prove to be helpful. Later, review the job steps with the employee to make sure you have not omitted something. Make sure the employee understands that you are evaluating the health and safety issues of the job itself, not the employee's job performance.
Outline the steps or tasks necessary to eliminate or reduce the hazards in the workplace -Consider what control methods will eliminate or reduce the health and safety issues. Is it a machine modification? A change in the work environment? And administrative change? An alteration of the order of the job process?
Schedule recurring JSA (job safety site analysis/safety audit) – to evaluate what additional changes need to be made, and whether or not the employees are following the health and safety guidelines of the previous JSA (Job Safety Analysis).
To determine what is a workplace hazard - ask the following:
1. What can go wrong?
2. What are the consequences?
3. How could it happen?
4. What are other contributing factors?
5. How likely is it that the hazard will occur?
Complete the Hazard Analysis with the Following Descriptions:
1. Environment - where the workplace hazard is happening
2. Exposure – who or what the work site hazard is happening to
3. Trigger – what precipitates the hazard
4. Consequence – the outcome likely to occur if the occupational accident or illness happens
5. Any other contributing factors
Complete a JSA (Job Safety Analysis or Safety Audit) Form – Include:
1. Job Location, Date of Analysis, Author of Analysis
2. Task Description (Explain the steps of the task in detail)
3. Hazard Description (Describe the known dangers in performing the task)
4. Hazard Controls (What safety procedures to follow each time the task is performed)
Review the JSA (Job Safety Analysis) with the Appropriate Employees:
1. Consider employee responses to the JSA (Job Safety Analysis)
2. Make sure the employees understand what they are required to do to prevent hazards in the workplace
3. Make sure the employees understand the health and safety reasons for the changes