Lift trucks are extremely dangerous machines. Statistics by OSHA show that approximately 100 warehouse workers are killed each and every year in forklift mishaps while they are operating them. 95,000 more employees are injured on the job each and every year too, using these heavy pieces of industrial machinery.
Most fatalities have been because of lift truck turnovers. Being crushed between the forklift and another surface is the second highest percentage of fatalities. The next highest cause of fatality is being struck by the forklift itself and last but not least, getting hit from falling things due to a dropped load is the last statistic. Each injury or death is quite frightening and terrible because of the immense weight and capability of these equipment.
Who Should Conduct the Training?
All training and evaluation for lift truck operation has to be taught by properly trained instructors. These trainers must have the knowledge and experience to train potential operators the necessary skills to evaluate their competence after that. Some examples of a qualified trainer include an individual who has a certificate, professional status or specialized degree in their possession, or who has extensive training, experience and knowledge using forklifts. A good candidate has a lot of experience and has shown the capability to teach and assess operators of industrial trucks.
There are resources available to pick from if their employer does not wish to perform the training themselves. Like for instance, they can hire in local health and safety organizations, like truck manufacturers, the National Safety Council local chapters, or private training consultants who specialize in powered industrial trucks. There are normally local vocational and trade schools that will be glad to offer some great resources.
There are numerous sites on the Internet that are dedicated to forklift safety. Private businesses can be found on-line that provide forklift safety training services, such as written programs and videos. Most safety videos can either be bought or rented or leased. One important factor to consider is that simply by showing your workers a video or a series of videos about forklift safety, does not meet the full requirements of the OSHA standard. Succeeding training and skill of the new operators has to be conveyed and assessed by a specific method in order to ensure the complete training has been obtained.
Once the driver has successfully passed all of the necessary training, a lift truck license would be issued and they would legally be able to operate a forklift. Valid lift truck licenses are a requirement by organizations so as to keep everyone at the workplace very safe.