OSHA Safety: Introduction to Powered Industrial Trucks

Each year in the U.S., dozens of workers — typically 70–100 fatalities — die in powered industrial truck (forklift)-related incidents, and tens of thousands more suffer serious and other injuries. Given these significant human and economic costs, employers are both morally and legally obligated to take every possible safety precaution when dealing with powered industrial trucks. 

This course provides OSHA-compliant safety training for powered industrial truck operations. Key topics include regulatory requirements, equipment classifications, daily inspections, stability principles, safety features, and safe operating practices. This theoretical training must be combined with hands-on instruction and workplace evaluation to meet OSHA certification requirements.

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Identify the common safety features and working dimensions of forklifts.
• Describe how forklifts operate.
• Recall general safety considerations associated with forklift operation.
• Describe tasks that are performed during typical forklift startup and preventive inspections.
• Explain the basic principles and theory of forklift stability and describe how they affect forklift operation.
• List general guidelines for handling loads safely with a forklift.
• Identify required operating training requirements.