Forklift Safety Training
Forklift Operator Safety Training
Occupational Safety Training Systems offers your company a convenient way to meet your OSHA requirements regarding Forklift Safety for Forklift Operators.
Regulatory Requirement Summary
General Industry . – Powered Industrial Truck training Standards – CCR Title 8 Section 3668 (California OSHA), 29 CFR 1910.178 (Federal OSHA)
Our Forklift Safety Training Program helps operators increase efficiency, lowers maintenance cost for equipment and reduces product, or material damage. Topics covered in class.
(1) Truck-related topics:
(A) Operating instructions, warnings, and precautions for the types of truck the operator will be authorized to operate;
(B) Differences between the truck and the automobile;
(C) Truck controls and instrumentation: where they are located, what they do, and how they work;
(D) Engine or motor operation;
(E) Steering and maneuvering;
(F) Visibility (including restrictions due to loading);
(G) Fork and attachment adaptation, operation, and use limitations;
(H) Vehicle capacity;
(I) Vehicle stability;
(J) Any vehicle inspection and maintenance that the operator will be required to perform;
(K) Refueling and/or charging and recharging of batteries;
(L) Operating limitations;
(M) Any other operating instructions, warnings, or precautions listed in the operator’s manual for the types of vehicle that the employee is being trained to operate.
(2) Workplace-related topics:
(A) Surface conditions where the vehicle will be operated;
(B) Composition of loads to be carried and load stability;
(C) Load manipulation, stacking, and unstacking;
(D) Pedestrian traffic in areas where the vehicle will be operated;
(E) Narrow aisles and other restricted places where the vehicle will be operated;
(F) Hazardous (classified) locations where the vehicle will be operated;
(G) Ramps and other sloped surfaces that could affect the vehicle’s stability;
(H) Closed environments and other areas where insufficient ventilation or poor vehicle maintenance could cause a build-up of carbon monoxide or diesel exhaust;
(I) Other unique or potentially hazardous conditions in the workplace that could affect safe operation.
OSHA Forklift Safety Training overview
A trained, certified instructor will conduct training that meets OSHA training requirements either in English or Spanish at your facility. We do not teach dual-language classes.
Forklift Safety Training and Certification requires approximately four (4) hours of instruction combined with a written examination, video and practical evaluation. (Time can fluctuate based on number of students).
Note: This course is not designed to teach a new person how to operate a forklift. The purpose is to inform or refresh experienced operators on important safety principles as required by OSHA. To become a Forklift Safety Instructor, ask about our Forklift Safety Train-The-Trainer program.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) investigations of forklift-related deaths indicate that many workers and employers may not be aware of the risks of operating or working near forklifts and are not following the procedures set forth in OSHA standards, consensus standards, or equipment manufacturer’s guidelines. Generally, reducing the risk of forklift incidents requires comprehensive worker training, systematic traffic management, a safe work environment, a safe forklift, and safe work practices. The following references aid in recognizing and controlling some of the hazards associated with powered industrial trucks (PIT).
Potential Hazards
Preventing Injuries and Deaths of Workers Who Operate or Work Near Forklifts. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publication No. 2001-109, (2001, June). Includes forklift fatality data, current standards, case reports, recommendations, and instructs workers in the steps they can take to protect themselves. Youth and Labor: Hazardous Jobs. US Department of Labor (DOL). Provides links to federal and state sites related to hazardous occupations for young workers.
Case Studies
Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program: Index of In-house FACE Investigative Reports. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Includes reports on investigations of fatal occupational injuries.
Fatal Accident Summary Report: Struck and Crushed By a Backing Forklift While Cleaning Up an Auto Salvage Yard. FACE 8418.
Order Selector Dies After Jumping 16 Feet From an Elevated Pallet on an Overturning Forklift in South Carolina. FACE 9124.
Press Operator Dies After Forklift Rams Scrap Bin– North Carolina. FACE 9604.
Supply Motorman Killed by Load Falling from a Forklift. FACE 8412.
Seventeen-Year-Old Warehouse Laborer Dies After the Forklift He Was Operating Tipped Over and Crushed Him—Arizona. FACE 2002-02.
Seventeen-Year-Old Laborer at Salvage Lumber Operation Crushed by Forklift That Tipped Over – New York. FACE 2000-22.
Sixteen-Year-Old Laborer At a Building Supply Center Crushed by Forklift That Tipped Over – Ohio. FACE 2000-09.
Possible Solutions
Protecting Young Workers: Prohibition Against Young Workers Operating Forklifts. OSHA Safety and Health Information Bulletin (SHIB) 03-09-30, (2003, September 30). Informs employers that youth employment regulations (29 CFR 570) promulgated under the Fair Labor Standards Act prohibit most employees under the age of 18 years from operating forklifts for non-agricultural operations and reminds employers that all forklift operators must be trained and certified.
Preventing Injuries and Deaths of Workers Who Operate or Work Near Forklifts. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Publication No. 2001-109, (2001, June). Includes information on forklift fatality data, current standards, case reports, recommendations, and instructs workers in the steps they can take to protect themselves.
Department wide Program Evaluation of the Hazardous Materials Transportation Programs: Final Report. US Department of Transportation (DOT), (2000, March), 297 KB PDF, 172 pages.
All training is performed in accordance with Federal OSHA, applicable State-chartered OSHA, and other State Regulations and local Ordinances.
