Page 47 - Occupational Health & Safety, August 2018

LOCKOUT/TAGOUT TRAINING
Training Workers on Control of Hazardous Energy
OSHA’s lockout/tagout standard, 29 CFR 1910.147, explains exactly why employees must be trained. It also requires different levels
of training for three categories of employees.
BY JERRY LAWS
www.ohsonline.com
Failing to train workers on the control of po- tentially hazardous energy can be an expen- sive mistake. Earlier this year, in April, OSHA issued a willful citation to a Pennsylvania
paperboard manufacturer for alleged violations of 29 CFR 1910.147(c)(7)(i), the section of OSHA’s lock- out/tagout standard that requires employee training so that they understand the purpose and function of the energy control program and so they acquire the knowledge and skills necessary for the safe applica- tion, usage, and removal of the energy controls.
The citation also alleged that the company failed to develop, document, and use procedures for control- ling hazardous energy when employees were doing maintenance on four machines, including adjust- ments, cleaning, replacing parts, and clearing jams.
OSHA said the company had previously been cited for both types of violations in 2014 and 2017,
and the agency’s proposed penalty for this cita- tion was $71,135.00. The overall proposed penalty: $201,212.00.
“Several violations identified in our 2015 inspec- tion were only partially corrected or continued,” Mark Stelmack, director of OSHA’s Wilkes-Barre Area Of- fice, said at the time. “The employer’s continued fail- ure to follow basic safety standards places employees at risk of serious injury or worse.”
Levels of Employee Training
Preventing serious injuries is the point of the lockout/ tagout standard and the training requirements in it.
After explaining why employees must be trained, as mentioned above, the standard also specifies dif- ferent levels of training for the three categories of employees, saying:
■ Authorized employees must receive training AUGUST 2018 | Occupational Health & Safety 43
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