Hand Safety Toolbox Talk
Hands are involved in more recordable construction injuries than any other part of the body, and the cause is almost always the same: the hand was in the path of the thing that moved.
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The talk, read this out
Look at your hands. Every one of us uses them for everything on this job and none of us plans where they are going to be during the next ten seconds. That is the whole talk.
Think in terms of the line of fire. Before you do anything, ask where the energy goes if this slips, drops, swings, springs back or closes. Then put your hands outside that path. That one habit prevents more hand injuries than any glove ever made.
Pinch points are the ones that take fingers. Material being set down, a door being hung, sheet goods being stood up, a load being landed, a tailgate, a scissor lift rail, anything with a hinge. The hand goes on the outside face, never in the gap, and never underneath.
Knives are the other half. Most utility knife injuries happen cutting toward the hand holding the material, or with a dull blade that needs more force and then slips. Cut away from yourself, change the blade when it drags, and use a self retracting or hook blade where you can.
Gloves need matching to the hazard. Cut resistant for handling metal, glass and sheet goods. Leather for rough material and heat. Chemical gloves for chemicals, because ordinary gloves absorb and hold solvent against your skin. Impact gloves for demo and anything with a hammer near it.
And the exception that matters: no gloves near rotating equipment. A glove that catches in a drill, a grinder, a saw or a bit pulls the hand into it. That is the one place where bare hands are the safer choice.
Last thing, the small cuts. A cut that seems minor on a job site is a puncture full of concrete dust, rust or treated lumber. Clean it, cover it, report it. Infection is what turns a two day cut into a two week problem.
Point at these before anybody starts
A talk delivered in a trailer is a meeting. Stand where the work is and put a hand on each of these.
- The pinch points on today's work: hinges, loads landing, sheet goods, tailgates
- The gloves people are wearing, and whether they match the hazard
- Every rotating tool on site, where gloves come off
- Utility knives: blade condition, cutting direction, and whether a hook blade would be safer
- Where hands are going to be during the riskiest lift or set today
- The first aid kit, where it is and whether it has anything left in it
The rules that apply
- Identify the line of fire before every task and keep hands out of it.
- Never place a hand under a load, inside a gap that can close, or between material and a fixed object.
- Match the glove to the hazard: cut resistant, leather, chemical or impact.
- No gloves near rotating tools, bits or wheels where the glove can be caught and pull the hand in.
- Cut away from your body with a sharp blade, and retract or sheath the blade the moment you finish.
- Report and treat every cut and puncture, however small. Infection is the usual complication.
Ask the crew
Three questions, answered out loud by name. This is the part that tells you whether anybody was listening.
- On today's work, where is the pinch point nobody has mentioned yet?
- Who is wearing gloves near a rotating tool today?
- When did anybody last change a utility knife blade instead of pushing harder?
Close with this
Know where the energy goes and keep your hands out of it. Right glove for the hazard, no gloves near anything spinning.
A talk nobody signed for is a talk that, as far as anybody can later prove, never happened. Use the free toolbox meeting sign in sheet in PDF, Word or Excel, or print the PDF above, which already has the signature lines on it.
Questions people ask
Should you wear gloves when using a drill or grinder?
No. Gloves near rotating tools are an entanglement hazard. If a glove catches on a bit or a wheel it pulls the hand in before the operator can let go. Use gloves for handling material, and take them off for rotating tools.
What glove cut level do I need for sheet metal?
Handling sheet metal and glass usually calls for a higher ANSI cut level glove, commonly A4 or above, but check the glove's rating against the specific task. A general purpose work glove offers almost no cut protection.
Why do so many injuries involve hands?
Because hands do the work, and because people position them by habit rather than by plan. The task gets planned, the hand placement does not, so the hand ends up in the path of whatever moves.
More toolbox talks
TOOLBOX TALK: HAND SAFETY
Attendance
Everybody who was present signs, including subcontractors and anybody visiting the site.