Electrical Safety in the Workplace: Introduction
Electrical Safety in the Workplace: Introduction |
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"What is electrical safety at work and what does it have to do with me?" is a question many of you may be asking yourselves. We all know what work is. It is a necessary part of life. By true definition, it is the trade, profession or other means of livelihood for a person (source: www.dictionary.com). Electricity surrounds us in many ways and many contexts, both at home and at work. In many cases it is something that people take for granted. Electricity should never be taken for granted. Electrical safety is everyone's business. It is essential for everyone to be thinking about how electrical safety comes into play in the work setting.
There are seemingly unlimited numbers and types of workplaces. Similarly, each workplace has its own associated hazards and potential electrical dangers. There are many different types of work, and in the same way many different workplace settings. Work for some people takes place outdoors, for other people work happens inside. Some people work in a variety of indoor and outdoor settings. For some work happens during the day, for others work time is night time, whereas others have combined work schedules. Work for some people involves using a diversity of hand tools, power tools, equipment and machinery. For others, work primarily involves interacting with people. Work is many things to many people. There are seemingly endless combinations of work situation variables that alter the work environment and requirements. Where some work positions require a lot of physical exertion and effort, other positions require very little direct physical effort. This course will review the scope of possible workplace electrical hazards. Not all may directly apply to you, but a little knowledge has never hurt anyone. And who knows, today's workers may change careers a number of times in their lifetime (changing not just jobs, but entire careers). It is important to keep this in mind, as who knows what your next job will be, so read up and learn about as many workplace electrical safety tips as you can. It may save a life, and it could be your own that you save.
There are two main components of workplace electrical safety. There is the thinking component and the doing component. Both are a necessary part of workplace electrical safety. The thinking component of workplace electrical safety involves the proactive consideration of a situation. No matter what you are doing in the workplace, you need to be thinking through the entire process of what needs to be done, from start to finish. This is especially true when working with electricity. This kind of proactive planning helps to unearth the things that may go wrong in the process, to identify the hazards that may exist. The thinking component of electrical safety in the workplace involves thinking about the possible sources of electricity, thinking about the tools and equipment that you will be using that use electricity and how potential hazards can be minimized and/or avoided altogether.
The other main component of workplace electrical safety is the doing side. The doing side of workplace electrical safety involves the actions that you can take, the things that you can actually do (once you have thought about them and identified them) to minimize or avoid electrical hazards. On the doing side of dealing with electricity, it is essential to NEVER assume that something has been unhooked, disconnected or de-energized. This is asking for trouble. Because of the inherent danger of electricity you must always act as if the source of power is live, unless it has been quantitatively proven otherwise. When it comes to action, comes to doing, it is important to always take all possible actions to minimize or avoid potential electrical hazards. In the same way, you should always take action to ensure that you have the appropriate knowledge and skills to do what needs to be done, regardless of the job and regardless if it deals with electricity. Never approach a job, any job, unprepared. You have the power to take action.
The costs of workplace accidents are well documented. The costs include damage and losses on all levels of the organization. Observing electrical safety measures on the job makes people more conscious of everyday hazards. Electricity is a part of most workplaces in some way or another. The electrical system is quite broad and involves the generation, distribution and use of electricity. Very few workplaces do not come into contact with some component of the electrical system. Being safe in the workplace requires an understanding of electrical safety.
Many electrical accidents are preventable. Make sure that you take a moment to read through the case studies that accompany each course topic. Unfortunately, these composite cases are just the tip of the iceberg. You only have to go as far as the local media news broadcast to hear about some of the different things that have happened in relation to workplace electrical accidents. Here are just a few sample scenarios:
It cannot be stated enough how important it is to look around on the work sites and be able to recognize electrical hazards. Some examples would be overloaded circuits, poor condition of their cables and poor locations of them.
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Something to think about with regards to work: "Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work." ~ Aristotle (384BC - 322BC) Greek writer, philosopher |
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