It's now the law: Industrial truck operators must go to school

Electrical Apparatus, Jun 1999 by Elsberry, Richard B

OSHA's new rule requires formal classroom education by Dec. 1

ALMOST 30 YEARS AFTER IT was first promulgated, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration standard on the use of powered industrial trucks (29 CFR 1910.178) has been revised to require formal classroom education as well as practical behind-the-wheel training for all current and future operators.

The standard was first issued on May 29, 1971, and pertains to vehicles such as fork lift trucks, order pickers, and walking-type pallet trucks that are powered by either an internal combustion engine or a battery-driven electric motor.

The revised rule took effect March 1, 1999. It requires that employees hired prior to Dec. 1, 1999 must have their training completed and certified by that date. Employees hired after Dec. 1, 1999, must be trained and certified before they can be assigned to operate a powered industrial truck. They can, however, operate a truck to prove their competency under the direct supervision of a certified employee or a thirdparty driving instructor.

Pre-certification test drives do not have to be overseen by the same instructor in charge of classroom instruction. Nor do practical behindthe-wheel exercises have to be conducted in the same plant areas where the truck will be operated during normal work shifts. So as not to endanger the trainee or other employees, training can be conducted in a "representative" area where it will not interfere with or affect plant routines.

Employers are free to utilize a wide variety of classroom training techniques, such as lectures, discussions, written materials, videos, and interactive computer programs.

However, the training program is expected to cover such topics as: operating instructions; warnings and precautions; the differences between trucks and automobiles; truck controls; engine or motor operation; steering and maneuvering; visibility while loaded; fork and attachment adaptation, operation and use limitations; vehicle capacity; vehicle stability; inspection and maintenance to be performed by the operator; and refueling or charging procedures.

In addition, workplace-specific topics must be addressed. They include surface conditions in the work area, composition and stability of the loads to be carried, hazardous locations, narrow aisles or restricted places, ramps, pedestrian traffic, and confined areas where insufficient ventilation could result in a build-up of carbon monoxide or diesel exhaust fumes.

Where potential safety problems such as ramps or narrow aisles do not exist in the workplace, training exercises to familiarize the operator with such hazards are not required.

Refresher training and evaluation of the effectiveness of that training is required only if one of the following conditions apply:

The operator has been observed to operate the vehicle in an unsafe manner.

The operator has been involved in an accident or a "near miss."

The operator has received an evaluation indicating a pattern of unsafe operation.

The operator has been assigned to a different type of truck.

Conditions in the workplace have changed in a manner that could affect safe operation of the truck.

Periodic evaluations

Employers are now required to evaluate industrial truck operators at least once every three years. The type of evaluation, however, is not spelled out. It could be as simple as a supervisor with a checklist monitoring the operator while he or she performs typical job functions.

Certification that the training has been satisfactorily completed is also a snap. It entails only listing the name of the operator, the date of the training, the date of the evaluation, and the identity of the person or persons performing the training and the evaluation.

While seat belts have been a requirement on all powered industrial trucks placed in operation since 1992, older units without them could prove a problem if your facility is inspected by OSHA.

They could be cited as a violation under the general clause requiring employers to provide a safe workplace.

Although formal fork lift training was inaugurated as early as 1955 by the Eastman Kodak Co., it has for the most part been a hit-or-miss proposition over the years in many sectors of industry.

OSHA hopes the new training requirements will help make a dent in the number of accidents involving powered trucks, which cause some 95,000 injuries and about 100 fatalities annually.

Most operator fatalities result from overturns, flip-overs or the operator falling off the truck or running it off the loading dock. Employee fatalities are typically the result of being pinned, struck by the lift, or being hit by falling materials.

A 1998 fatality in New Hampshire, where an unattended fork lift rolled down an incline and pinned a tractortrailer driver, resulted in an immediate OSHA inspection followed by a $140,000 OSHA fine.

The new training rules, OSHA estimates, will save employers $135 million a year in medical expense, property damage, and worker's compensation costs.

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