Job Safety Analysis (JSA), also known as Job Hazard Analysis (JHA), Activity Hazard Analysis (AHA) or Risk Assessment (RA), is a safety management tool in which the risks or hazards of a specific job in the workplace are identified, and then measures to eliminate or control those hazards are determined and implemented.

More specifically, we are talking about a process of systematically evaluating jobs, tasks, processes or procedures and eliminating or reducing the risks or hazards in order to protect workers from injury or illness.

The JHA process is documented and the JHA document is used in the workplace or at the job site to guide workers in safe job performance and to develop safety work practices and safe operating procedures.

The JHA process begins with identification of the potential hazards or risks associated with a particular job.

Once the hazards are understood, the consequences of those hazards are then identified, followed by control measures to eliminate or mitigate the hazards.

A more detailed JHA can be performed by breaking the job into steps and identifying specific hazards and control measures for each job step, providing the worker with a documented set of safe job procedures.

The end result of our JHA process is an easy to understand document that can be shared with workers as part of pre-job and safety meetings, and/or included as part of worker job descriptions. The JHA process can be used to help refine safe work procedures described in safety policies or standard operating procedures, and the JHA document can serve as a useful tool in training new employees.

It is important to remember that a JHA is not simply a piece of paper; it is a process. Workers and management need to understand that a piece of paper will not make the job safe. Rather, workers and management must understand the risks and hazards associated with the job and know how to utilize the chosen controls in such a way as to eliminate or mitigate those risks. The JHA documents the decisions of this process.

• Selecting the job(s) to be analyzed.
• Breaking the job(s) down into a sequence of steps and Identifying potential hazards.
• Once these hazards are identified you’ll have a road map that can be used to prevent future incidents.