• Requirements protect workers from injury when using forklifts.forklift image by Michael Cornelius from Fotolia.com
  
  Forklifts are devices designed to help single individuals lift objects that normally would require several people. These forklifts are commonly found in warehouses where large and heavy objects are stored by companies. Forklifts are mostly safe pieces of equipment, though the Occupational Health and Safety Administration has created some very explicit guidelines that govern safety standards regarding the forklift.
  
  

Certification

• Before using a forklift, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration requires that workers receive practical training from experienced forklift users and are also observed by experienced forklift users. They must also receive formal training in the form of lectures, videos and other formats. In these training programs, the forklift operators are taught the safe and effective operation of the forklift and are also taught the limitations of the forklift. The training is handled entirely by the employer.
  
  

Filing

• Employers must keep files of all of the operators of the forklifts at the given company. These files must state who the forklift operators are, that the operators completed formal study in the classroom and that the operators have been supervised by an experienced forklift operator.
  
  

Seatbelts

• Sit-down forklifts must come with a seat belt unless the forklift was manufactured before 1993. However, even if the forklift was manufactured before 1993, if the manufacturer offered to install a seat belt on the forklift, the owner can be cited if the owner does not take the manufacturer up on the offer.
  
  

Headlights

• Headlights must be installed on the forklift if the working area has less than 2 lumens per square foot. Many factories have adequate lighting and thus have forklifts with no headlights.
  
  

Hardhats

• Those operating a forklift within a warehouse must wear a hardhat. While the top of the forklift provides protection from larger objects falling on the operator, smaller objects can fall into the forklift and injure the operator. Also, many forklifts are not designed to receive full impact from a heavy falling object and the operator can be injured or crushed under these falling objects.
  
  

Alcohol

• Those who have consumed alcohol should not operate the forklift, even if they have only consumed a little alcohol. Those who have only consumed a little alcohol often think that their judgment is not impaired, but they can make mistakes that can bring them into contact with hazards such as exposed electrical conductors and moving mechanical equipment when driving the forklift.