16
Jul 2024
TOOLBOX TALK 14/60: HOUSEKEEPING
TOOLBOX TALK 14/60
TOPIC: HOUSEKEEPING
OBJECTIVE: TO ENSURE THE WORKPLACE IS KEPT CLEAN AND CLEAR OF OBSTRUCTIONS
Housekeeping is everybody’s responsibility
Everyone has seen jobs where it wasn’t safe to turn around or even put your foot down without looking twice to be sure there wasn’t something that might cause an accident. Your job will be much easier and safer if everyone practiced good housekeeping:
- Put all scrap in its proper place.
- Secure materials to prevent shifting or rolling.
- Keep toolboxes clean and orderly.
- Don’t leave open containers of flammables; fuels, paint, oil, grease, adhesives.
- Store materials so there is always a clean path around and between work areas.
- Sweep up dirt and rubbish.
Good housekeeping in the workplace pays off in many ways:
- It helps us operate more efficiently and get the job done quicker.
- It helps us get the job done safely. It is a fact that most falls on the same level could have been prevented by good housekeeping practices.
- No one likes working in a mess! You are more likely to take pride in your job and keep it clean if it’s clean to begin with, not to mention your boss or your client being impressed.
Good housekeeping is a result of planning in advance to determine who will be responsible for:
- Rubbish and how it will be removed.
- Material storage and how it will be stored.
- It requires the cooperation of everyone to keep the equipment and work areas clean and orderly.
- Everyone has seen the hazards that are created by poor housekeeping. Many people have even experienced first-hand an injury or seen an injury that is the result of poor housekeeping.
Questions you can use to get them talking:
- What can we do to improve housekeeping on this job?
- Have any of you noticed any housekeeping problems in your work area?
- Has anyone ever had an accident involving bad housekeeping?
- Is there any area on this job which presently needs a clean-up?
- Are the rubbish bins on this job adequate and are they being used?
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