Federal Safety Requirements
It’s the law! The Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) states in Section 1910.178 (l) (i) that: The employer shall ensure that each powered industrial truck operator is competent to operate a powered industrial truck safely, as demonstrated by the successful completion of the training and evaluation specified in this paragraph (l).
Also, refresher training in relevant topics shall be provided to the operator when:
- The operator has been observed to operate the vehicle in an unsafe manner
- The operator has been involved in an accident or near-miss incident
- The operator has received an evaluation that reveals that the operator is not operating the truck safely
- The operator is assigned to drive a different type of truck; or
- A condition in the workplace changes in a manner that could affect safe operation of the truck
- An evaluation of each powered industrial truck operator's performance shall be conducted at least once every three years