WHAT ELECTRICAL SAFETY QUESTIONS WILL AN OSHA INSPECTOR ASK?
In its efforts to maintain electrical safety in the workplace, OSHA develops its standards in accordance with those published by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). To ensure that employers are following both sets of guidelines, OSHA trains its inspectors to ask specific questions when investigating an electrical safety incident. Some of those questions include: • Do you have a written description or drawing of the circuit or equipment at the job site? If an employer doesn’t, the assumption is that the employer has performed an electrical hazards assessment of the facility. • Is there a detailed account of all of the tasks involved in the planned work? This is the only way the employee will know what safety procedures to follow. • Were the workers qualified to perform the task? By definition, qualified workers are those specially trained to work on live electrical equipment. They must know how to protect themselves against all electrical hazards, including shock, arc flash
