A pallet jack may not be the most hazardous piece of equipment in your workplace. But its simple appearance can be dangerously

deceiving. Manual pallet jacks have been the culprit behind crushed toes, scraped knuckles and pulled backs. Improperly stored and these devices also pose tripping hazards. If your facility uses pallet jacks, share these safety tips with your workers.

Wear Proper PPE

Workers who work with pallet jacks need to wear appropriate personal protective equipment, including:

• Safety-toed footwear to prevent foot injuries caused by being run over by the wheels, being hit by materials falling from the jack or stubbing a toe on the jack;
• Gloves to reduce the risk of cuts, bruises and blisters; and
• Safety eyewear to prevent injuries from material strapping and hazardous chemicals being moved.

Maintain the Pallet Jacks

After a while, the solid rubber wheels of pallet jacks can develop wear, resulting in unstable loads and poor handling. In turn, workers can experience stress to the hands and arms because of difficulty steering and stopping the device.

Periodic maintenance of pallet jacks will enable workers to operate the devices with the minimum amount of hand, arm and finger force.

Maintain the Pallets Too

Keeping your pallets in good condition may sound trivial, but it's not. Using a damaged or defective pallet can have serious consequences. For example, it can cause a load to shift and fall, resulting in injury. It's important to inspect pallets before using them.

Follow these Safe Handling Guidelines

Here are some tips for workers to keep in mind when using a pallet jack:

• Check the floor for ruts, bumps and other imperfections;
• Never place your feet under a pallet jack;
• If your view is obstructed, have a co-worker guide the load;
• Never exceed a pallet jack's load capacity;
• Don't use a pallet jack for human transportation;
• When going down an incline, push, don't pull;
• Stick to correct traffic lanes, and be alert to avoid collisions around corners;
• Be aware of pinchpoint hazards to your hands; and
• Use proper lifting techniques when loading and unloading.

Store Them Properly

When not in use, store pallet jacks where they will not create tripping hazards. And make sure that the devices do not block exits or emergency equipment, such as fire extinguishers.

Conclusion

Pallet jacks are commonplace tools for moving materials. But as with all tools, they require attention to safe handling.

POP QUIZ

Safety Stumpers

By Catherine Jones

1. Plumbism is another name for what?

2. In a double-jointed person, what are more elastic than normal?

3. In the most common form of color blindness, what two colors cannot be distinguished from each other?

4. What PPE should be worn if you're caught in a haboob?

5. In 2004, what weather-related hazard killed more Americans than any other?

6. What track and field event involves running and scissors?

Answers:

1. Lead poisoning

2. Ligaments

3. Red and green

4. Safety eyewear and a respirator (a haboob is a dust storm)

5. Floods

6. The high jump

Do you have a safety stumper you'd like to share? Send it to catherinej@bongarde.com and let me know if we can use your name.

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