Job Safety Analysis Guide: How to Conduct a JSA
This job safety analysis guide explains how to examine a task step by step, identify associated hazards and determine controls that support safer work performance.
What Is a Job Safety Analysis?
A job safety analysis, or JSA, examines a defined task by breaking it into logical steps and considering hazards and controls associated with each stage.
Select and Define the Task
Establish the task boundaries, location, equipment, people and conditions involved. Avoid making the scope so broad that important hazards disappear within generic statements.
Break the Task Into Logical Steps
Describe the main sequence of work in enough detail to support hazard identification without turning every movement into a separate step.
Identify Hazards at Each Step
Consider equipment, energy, materials, movement, environment and interactions with other work. Involve people familiar with the task.
Select Appropriate Controls
Determine how hazards can be eliminated or reduced. Use the hierarchy of controls rather than automatically relying on PPE or worker caution.
Communicate and Review the JSA
Relevant people should understand the controls before work begins. Review the JSA when conditions, equipment or work methods change or when experience shows that existing controls need improvement.
