Near Miss Reporting Toolbox Talk
The accident that hurts somebody next month has usually already happened once this month without hurting anybody, and nobody wrote it down.
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The talk, read this out
Something nearly went wrong on this site in the last two weeks. I know it did, because something nearly goes wrong on every site. I want to hear one of them, and nobody is in trouble.
Be clear about the rules first. A near miss where nobody got hurt is not a recordable injury, so no federal rule makes anybody write it down. That is exactly why it disappears.
What is left is the General Duty Clause, which says the employer keeps the workplace free of recognized hazards. A hazard that nearly killed somebody on Tuesday is recognized. That is what a near miss actually does, it turns a hazard into a known one.
A near miss is a dropped tool that landed where nobody was standing. A trench that slumped overnight with nobody in it. A tag line that touched a line and nobody was holding it. If the only thing between that and an injury was luck or timing, it is a near miss.
The reason these go unreported is not laziness. It is that reporting one has historically meant a conversation about whose fault it was, and nobody volunteers for that. So the report has to cost nothing.
On this crew the rule is that reporting a near miss cannot be used against the person reporting it, including when the person reporting it caused it. If that ever stops being true, this stops working the same week.
What we want out of it is one sentence: what nearly happened, and what stopped it. Not a form, not an investigation, not a statement. One sentence to me, today, and then it is my job.
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 spot where something nearly went wrong on this site recently.
- The tool or material stored overhead that has not fallen yet.
- The hole, edge or opening that somebody stepped around instead of fixing.
- The cord, hose or bracing that has been walked over all week.
- The task everybody has a workaround for, because the right way is awkward.
- Where you would tell me about one of these, and whether that is private enough.
The rules that apply
- A near miss is anything where only luck, timing or position stopped an injury.
- It gets reported the same day, in one sentence, to the foreman.
- Reporting one is never used against the person reporting it, including when they caused it.
- No name is required on the report for the hazard to get fixed.
- The fix gets said out loud at the next talk, so people can see reporting changed something.
- A near miss that repeats is treated as a failure of the fix, not of the person.
Ask the crew
Three questions, answered out loud by name. This is the part that tells you whether anybody was listening.
- Name one thing this month where nobody got hurt but somebody could have.
- What stopped it, and would that same thing stop it again tomorrow?
- Is there anything you have not reported because you thought you would catch heat for it?
Close with this
Every serious injury on this site will have rehearsed itself first. Reporting it is how we get to see the rehearsal.
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
Do I have to record near misses for OSHA?
No. The injury and illness recordkeeping rules cover recordable injuries and illnesses. A near miss with no injury is not recordable, so near miss reporting is a company practice and not a federal requirement. That is the whole reason it needs to be defended on purpose.
Does reporting a near miss get somebody in trouble?
It cannot, if the system is going to work. The moment one report leads to discipline, the reports stop and the hazards stay. That is not a soft position, it is the only version that produces information.
What is the difference between a near miss and an unsafe condition?
An unsafe condition is a hazard sitting there. A near miss is that hazard nearly catching somebody. Both are worth reporting, and the near miss is the more urgent of the two because it has proved it can reach a person.
More toolbox talks
TOOLBOX TALK: NEAR MISS REPORTING
Attendance
Everybody who was present signs, including subcontractors and anybody visiting the site.