Forklift Health and Safety Best Practices Guideline

This best practices guideline provides practical guidance to help employers fulfill their obligations to protect the health and safety of workers who operate or work around forklifts. This best practices guideline was created with the help of a multi-stakeholder advisory committee that drew on its experience in forklift truck health and safety. The advisory committee included representatives from:

Alberta Construction Safety Association
Alberta Employment and Immigration
Alberta Federation of Labour
Health and Safety Association Network
International Union of Painters & Allied Trades
Manufacturers’ Health & Safety Association
Oil Sands Safety Association
Wajax Industries

Forklift trucks (forklifts) can pose significant risks to workers who operate or work around them.
To demonstrate some of the potential dangers of operating forklifts, the following are examples of forklift-related fatalities that have occurred:

“A worker was struck by a chain that dislodged from a pickup truck during an attempt to tow a forklift.”
“A worker was crushed by steel beams that were dislodged from a forklift while being unloaded from a trailer.”

Also Download: Forklift Operator’s Daily Checklist and Safety Tips

Forklift Health and Safety Best Practices Guideline’s Cover

“A worker was crushed by a forklift that fell off a jack stand during forklift maintenance.”
“A worker was crushed between a tank that was being moved by a forklift and another object.”
“A worker was overcome by carbon monoxide gas from a propane-powered forklift that was operating inside a ba with closed doors.”
“A worker was crushed by lumber that fell while being lifted by a forklift.”
“A worker was crushed by a forklift that tipped over on top of him.”
“A worker was struck by equipment attached to a compressed gas cylinder that ruptured when a forklift was unloading the equipment from a truck.”
“A worker was struck by a piece of equipment that slipped while pressure was being applied to it by a forklift—a task the forklift was not designed for.”
“A worker was crushed between a forklift that rolled forward and a trailer while loading concrete blocks.”

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A review of these and other scenarios involving forklift incidents showed a variety of causes for injuries to workers, and that such incidents could have been prevented if safer practices had been followed.
This best practices guideline provides practical guidance to help employers fulfill their obligations to protect the health and safety of workers who operate or work around forklifts.

Employers whose work involves the use of forklifts are encouraged to implement a comprehensive forklift health and safety program, which includes the following key elements:

Hazard assessment;
Training and information;
Management, supervision, and internal responsibility (includes forklift selection);
Safe operating procedures;
Forklift maintenance and modification;
Facility design; and
Preventing injuries to muscles, joints, and bones.

Also Read: 4 Major Forklift Accidents and Prevention

The content of Forklift Health and Safety Best Practices Guideline