A Key Tool to Gain Insights & Mitigate Risk
The Job Safety Analysis (JSA), sometimes called the Job Hazard Analysis (JHA), is an essential part of an organization’s risk management strategy. While the processes, tools, equipment, environment, and behaviors examined and the frequency of those activities vary greatly from company to company, the benefits are universal. The JSA allows EHS professionals to resolve and mitigate hazards to prevent injuries before they occur. There are several methods to conducting JSAs from observing workers perform tasks to inspecting entire job sites before starting the job.
When the JSA process involves many employees it promotes safety awareness and transparency for employees, managers and company leaders – the key to help combat complacency and encourage adoption of new procedures. JSA Trackers can make the entire collection and analysis process quick and easy. By providing employees with the tools they need to accurately collect, review, and discuss all relevant information, JSA Trackers enable organizations to proactively prevent potential issues from occurring.
The Optimal JSA Process
Not every job or task has to be subject to a JSA. So, how do you determine the jobs that need to be analyzed? There are a few factors to be considered in setting the priority for conducting JSAs:
- Frequency of accidents
- Severity of accidents
- Potential for severe injuries or illnesses
- Newly established or modified jobs, processes or equipment
- Non-routine jobs – i.e. those performed infrequently
Once you determine the tasks you will subject to a JSA, there are 4 steps you should take to complete the process:
Step 1: Select the job that you will analyze
Step 2: Break down the job into each step
Step 3: Identify the potential hazard at each step
Step 4: Determine how to eliminate the hazard
The Importance of JSA Process In Non-Routine Tasks
The majority of workplace accidents occur when performing non-routine or maintenance tasks. It makes sense – tasks that rarely occur don’t have the same level of awareness or procedures as to how to perform them. JSAs can serve as a guide to make sure the proper hazards are identified and removed before performing those incident-prone non-routine tasks.
Is There A Downside to JSAs?
Most safety professionals feel that the benefits of JSAs are clear. However, there are some critics. One of the drawbacks noted is that JSAs are time-consuming to develop and conduct. Others feel that the process simply creates too much paperwork and leads to the micromanagement of employees. This may mean JSAs are being conducted, but employees are just “going through the motions” as opposed to identifying potential hazards. Traditional methods for conducting JSAs allow for this critique. However, new solutions exist to overcome these potential challenges.
Mobile JSA Trackers enable quick and easy collection, review, and reporting of information collected from the field. The result is increased operational efficiency and safety awareness. Some JSA Trackers, like iReport for example, allow the collection of information anytime and from anywhere while providing real-time dashboard reports to help users quickly understand safety activity. In addition, the system’s workflow engine provides the ability to prioritize and resolve the uncovered issues. You even gain the ability to rate the severity and priority of the JSA findings to focus company efforts in the most effective areas.
Maximize Your Efforts
Don’t just go through the motions with JSAs. They can be a powerful tool when done right. The goal of a Job Safety Analysis is to prevent potential hazards from causing problems – not to cause problems themselves!
Using a JSA Tracker will allow you to involve as many employees as you want, helping to improve your safety culture while reducing complacency. In addition, JSA Trackers allow you to collect, store, and report on a great deal of data and information, equipping you with the insights you need to continually mitigate risk across your entire organization. It can’t be “one and done” – if you are going through the effort of conducting JSAs, make it worthwhile.
