Risk Assessment: Theory, Methods, and Applications

CHAPTER 14

JOB SAFETY ANALYSIS

14.1 INTRODUCTION

A job safety analysis (JSA) is a simple risk assessment method that is applied to review job procedures and practices in order to identify potential hazards and determine risk-reducing measures. Each job is broken down into specific tasks, for which observation, experience, and checklists are used to identify hazards and associated controls and safeguards. The JSA is carried out by a team, and most of the work is done in a JSA meeting. The results from the analysis are documented in JSA worksheets, as illustrated in Figure 14.2. Alternative names for JSA are safe job analysis (SJA), job hazard analysis (JHA), and task hazard analysis (THA).

14.2 OBJECTIVES AND APPLICATIONS

A JSA is used for three main purposes.

1. Nonroutine jobs. A JSA is carried out for new and nonroutine jobs that are considered to have a high risk in order to:
   1. Make the operators aware of inherent or potential hazards that may be encountered when executing the job;
   2. Provide pre-job safety instructions;
   3. Give operators guidance on how to deal with hazards events if such events should happen;
   4. Teach operators and supervisors how to perform the job correctly and in the safest possible way.
2. Dangerous routine jobs. A JSA is performed to scrutinize and make improvements to jobs that have led to several incidents or accidents. More detailed objectives are to:
   1. Reveal hazardous motions, postures, activities, or work practices of individual employees;
   2. Help determine how hazards ...