Forklift certification: what OSHA requires

Who must be trained

• Employers must make sure every forklift operator is competent to operate the truck safely, shown by completing the training and evaluation OSHA requires. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(1)(i)) [src]
• Apart from training itself, nobody may operate a forklift until the employer has confirmed they finished the required training. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(1)(ii)) [src]
• Trainees may drive a forklift only under direct supervision by someone with the knowledge, training and experience to train operators, and only where it does not put the trainee or other workers at risk. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(2)(i)(A)-(B)) [src]
• In non-farm jobs, federal child labor rules (Hazardous Occupations Order No. 7) bar workers under 18 from operating, riding on or helping operate most power-driven hoisting equipment, forklifts and scissor lifts included. (29 CFR 570.58 (HO 7); FLSA) [src]

What the training must include

1. Forklift training must combine three parts. The first is formal instruction, such as a lecture, discussion, computer course, video or written material. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(2)(ii)) [src]
2. The second part is practical training: the trainer demonstrates and the trainee does hands-on exercises. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(2)(ii)) [src]

• Only people with the knowledge, training and experience to train and evaluate operators may run the training and evaluation. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(2)(iii)) [src]
• Initial training must cover the truck-related and workplace-related topics OSHA lists, unless the employer can show a topic does not apply to safe operation at that workplace. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(3)) [src]
• If an operator was already trained on a required topic, that topic does not have to be repeated, as long as the earlier training fits the truck and workplace and the operator has been evaluated as competent. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(5)) [src]

Refresher training and re-evaluation

• Refresher trigger 1: the operator has been seen driving unsafely. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(ii)(A)) [src]
• Refresher trigger 2: the operator has had an accident or a near miss. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(ii)(B)) [src]
• Refresher trigger 3: an evaluation shows the operator is not driving safely. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(ii)(C)) [src]
• Refresher trigger 4: the operator is assigned to a different type of truck. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(ii)(D)) [src]
• Refresher trigger 5: something in the workplace changes in a way that could affect safe driving. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(ii)(E)) [src]

Every operator's performance must be evaluated at least once every three years. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(iii)) [src]

What the certificate must show

The employer must certify that each operator has been trained and evaluated. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(6)) [src] The certification must list the operator's name, the training date, the evaluation date, and who did the training or evaluation. (29 CFR 1910.178(l)(6)) [src]