Job Hazard Analysis to Improve Construction Safety

Creating a safe working environment is necessary for every industry. However, it’s particularly important for the construction sector because it’s dangerous. Research shows that one in four work-related deaths occurs in the construction industry.

NYC is also one of the deadliest places for construction workers nationwide. The city’s construction-related deaths and injuries have been steadily declining for the past three years, but that doesn’t change the fact that NYC still has the highest construction-related injury and fatality rate in the country.

What is a Job Hazard Analysis?

A job hazard analysis is also known as a job safety analysis. It’s a technique contractors use to identify and address hazards on job sites. Conducting a job hazard analysis is crucial because it helps mitigate dangerous risks on job sites. In addition, it allows permit holders to create strategies to emphasize worksite safety.

Performing a Job Hazard Analysis

The first step for a job hazard analysis is to find which jobs you want to tackle and prioritize. These jobs usually have a higher accident occurrence rate, resulting in serious injuries and fatalities.

Creating a library of job hazard analysis on the jobs your workers perform can also help. You might need to update or change these periodically as environment or site conditions change.

You’ll also want to break jobs into individual tasks. The best way to do that is by having a site safety manager or supervisor examine an experienced employee’s work. The observer can make detailed notes about each step.

Keeping the number of steps for each job below ten is helpful. If a specific job has more than ten steps, consider separating it into two jobs.

Once you’ve broken down a job into individual steps, identify potential hazards. Getting feedback from experienced workers is helpful because they can contribute from experience. Since the workers might also encounter these potential hazards regularly, they might have ideas or strategies for mitigating risk.

You’ll want to assess each hazard’s risk. A risk assessment will help you identify the probability of each hazard and the severity of possible accident injuries. Understanding which hazards have the highest probability and risk will help you devise preventative measures to mitigate them.

Most worksites try to reduce exposure to a hazard. However, this should be a last resort because it’s the least effective hazard mitigation method. Instead, focus on revamping work procedures by changing task sequences or adding steps to minimize safety risks. Following OSHA’s regulations and DOB’s Chapter 33 is also good for construction and demolition sites.