OSHA earlier this week unveiled a new interactive training tool designed to help small businesses identify safety hazards in the workplace.
The hazard-identification program “is an interactive, online, game-based training tool for small-business owners, workers and others interested in learning the core concepts of hazard identification,” OSHA explains on its website. “After using this tool, users will better understand the process to identify hazards in their own workplace.”
Through the new training tool, employers and workers can virtually explore how to identify common workplace hazards in the manufacturing and construction industries. In addition to hazard identification, users also will learn about hazard abatement and control, according to OSHA.
“Hazard identification is a critical part of creating an injury and illness prevention program that will keep workers safe and healthy on the job,” OSHA Administrator Dr. David Michaels said. “This new tool not only educates employers about how to take control of their workplaces and protect workers, it also demonstrates that following well-established safety practices is also good for the bottom line.”
Michaels unveiled the new tool at the American Society of Safety Engineers’ Professional Development Conference and Expo in Orlando, Fla.
Through the hazard-identification tool, users can play from the perspective of either a business owner or an employee as they learn to identify realistic, common hazards and address them with practical and effective solutions, according to OSHA.
The tool explains the key components of the hazard-identification process, which include information collection; workplace observation; incident investigation; employee participation; and hazard prioritization.