Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) | Montgomery College, Maryland

What is a Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) or Job Safety Analysis (JSA)?

A JHA or JSA is a method for identifying and evaluating hazards associated with tasks (steps) with a specific job or activity and eliminating or mitigating them prior to conducting work.

Why Conduct a JHA?

A JHA con prevent work-related injuries or illnesses by eliminating or controlling identified hazards. It is a means to ensure that workers have the training, equipment, and supplies to do their jobs safely.

How do I conduct a JHA?

It is best to involve workers who do or will do the jobs being analyzed. Observe a worker perform the job or activity at the location where it is normally done.

A JHA involves doing the following:

Select the job/activity to be analyzed.
Break the job/activity down into a series of tasks.
Identify potential hazards and consequences in each task.
Determine preventive measures to overcome these hazards.

How do I identify jobs for analysis?

Ideally, all jobs/activities should have a JHA. However, jobs/activities with the following conditions should be considered a high priority for analysis:

Tasks that have the most safety and health hazards
Tasks that have a high frequency of incidents, injuries, or illnesses
Tasks that have a potential for serious incidents
New or revised tasks
Non-routine tasks
Tasks involving new equipment or machinery
Eventually all tasks.

Benefits of a Job Hazard Analysis

Can be used to set performance standards, recommendations can be built into the job description.
Can be used to facilitate training,
Minimize incidents,
Makes employees safety conscious.