There is confusion as to whether or not OSHA (Occupational Health and Safety Administration), the main federal agency charged with the enforcement of safety and health legislation, requires all employers to hold regular safety meetings.
In checking with OSHA, the agency does not. Although, there are specific categories of businesses that must conduct safety reviews and trainings at specified intervals, such as power generation and distribution.
Furthermore, there is no specific OSHA regulation to address fleet maintenance and/or service shops, and as such, there is no OSHA regulation to require fleet maintenance or service shops to hold regular safety meetings. This does not however, negate the requirement for employers to train employees in the hazards associated with the work they perform and provide training where required by the regulations.
OSHA regulations do, however, recommend that safety meetings take place for all businesses. Where not required, safety meetings don’t have to be complex.
Informal Meetings
Maintenance shops would do well to take a lesson from factories and construction jobsites, where a safety meeting is often tagged onto what is known as a toolbox meeting or toolbox talk. Typically, these are brief, informal meetings between managers or supervisors and their employees at the start of a work day or shift to make sure everyone knows what they need to do for the day, plus raise and address any urgent issues or matters.
Shops can hold toolbox meetings to discuss specific safety topics that help encourage safe work practices and talk about any special hazards. Other matters that can be addressed include any new work procedures, health and welfare concerns, fatigue, ergonomics, hazard communications, LOTO (lockout and tagout), PPE (personal protective equipment), etc.
Recordkeeping
Regardless of the type of safety meeting, a best practice is to keep a record of it for your reference and as proof for the OSHA or any other regulatory agency that might show an interest in your training practices.
Most commonly, a simple, one-page form can be used to record the meetings. It should include the date and time the meeting was held, who attended, topics discussed, any plans developed and be signed by the person leading the meeting.
