Safety talks by month
December safety topics for plants and warehouses
December's hazard is who is missing. Crews are thin, the trained first aider is on leave, and a lockout hung on the 23rd is still on the machine when someone else comes back in January. It is also National Impaired Driving Prevention Month. These eight talks cover the holiday weeks, the shutdown and the year-end paperwork that is due before the first working week.
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Print 30 toolbox talks, one page each
For plants and warehouses, with a sign-in sheet. Free after one short form.
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December dates and observances
Only observances confirmed on the organiser's own page are listed, each with its owner and a link. Where a date moves from year to year, the year is given. Check the source before you print a calendar.
Where the dates fall in December
National Impaired Driving Prevention Month
All of December
Days it can fall onDate set by the organiser each year
National Impaired Driving Prevention Month
When: All of December
Who runs it: National observance, as described by SAMHSA
SAMHSA says it has been observed for more than 40 years.
Source for National Impaired Driving Prevention Month (opens in a new tab)
8 safety talks for December
Each talk gives the hazard, words a supervisor can say at the start of a shift, one question to put to the crew, and the rule or guidance it rests on. Say it in your own words and wait for an answer to the question.
1. Getting home from the holiday party
The hazard: December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month. Work parties, family gatherings and late shifts all end with a drive home.
What to say: Plan the ride before the first drink, not after the last one. If someone at a work event should not be driving, speak to them or get me. You will not be in trouble for it.
Ask the crew: How are you getting home from the site party?
Source: SAMHSA, National Impaired Driving Prevention Month (opens in a new tab)
2. Who is the first aider this week
The hazard: The name on the first aid poster may be on a beach. Where no clinic or hospital is in near proximity, OSHA requires a person or persons adequately trained to render first aid.
What to say: This is who is trained on each shift over the holidays. If that changes because someone swaps a shift, I need to know before the shift starts.
Ask the crew: Who is the first aider on your shift on the 27th?
3. Decorations and exit doors
The hazard: Tinsel, wrapping paper and a tree by the door seem harmless. OSHA requires each exit route door to be free of decorations or signs that obscure the visibility of the door.
What to say: Decorate the break room as much as you like. Nothing goes on or around an exit door, over an exit sign or across an extinguisher.
Ask the crew: Is anything hanging on or near an exit door in your area?
4. Warm-up breaks for the yard and dock
The hazard: Fewer people outside means longer spells in the cold for each of them. OSHA's cold stress guidance includes frequent short breaks in warm dry areas and working in pairs so each can watch the other.
What to say: Yard and dock crews take the warm-up breaks on the board even when we are short. Nobody works outside alone this month.
Ask the crew: Who is your buddy outside today?
Source: OSHA, Winter Weather: Cold Stress (opens in a new tab)
5. Lockout across the shutdown
The hazard: A job started before the break is finished by someone else after it. OSHA requires specific procedures during shift or personnel changes to keep lockout protection continuous, including the orderly transfer of devices between employees.
What to say: If you leave a job locked out over the shutdown, the handover is written on the tag and in the log, with a name. The person returning hangs their own lock before yours comes off.
Ask the crew: Which jobs will still be locked out when we close?
6. The yearly lockout procedure check
The hazard: A procedure written for the machine as it was three years ago may miss an energy source added since. OSHA requires a periodic inspection of the energy control procedure at least annually.
What to say: A quiet week is a good time for it. I will watch one of you run the procedure on your machine and we fix what no longer matches.
Ask the crew: What has changed on your machine since its lockout procedure was written?
7. Before the plant restarts
The hazard: Tools get left inside machines over a shutdown. Before locks come off, OSHA requires the work area to be inspected so that nonessential items are removed and the machine is intact, and employees to be safely positioned.
What to say: On restart day nobody presses start until the machine has been walked, guards are on and everyone is accounted for. Call it out loud before you energize.
Ask the crew: What was the last thing found inside a machine here after maintenance?
8. Closing the injury log
The hazard: The year's injury record is only as good as what was reported. At the end of each calendar year OSHA requires the employer to review the 300 Log for accuracy, certify a summary and post it.
What to say: If you were hurt this year and it was never written up, tell me this week. The summary goes on the wall in February and it should be true.
Ask the crew: Is there an injury from this year that you think we missed?
A week-by-week plan for December
One way to spread the talks over the month. It is an example order, so move a talk when your own shutdown, weather or shift pattern says it belongs in a different week.
| Week | Talks | Why then |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Party season starts and the cold has set in. | |
| Week 2 | Decorations go up and the leave calendar fills. | |
| Week 3 | The last full week before the shutdown. | |
| Week 4 | Use the restart talk on the first day back if the plant is closed. |
Safety topics for every month
The year by month, with the hazards each month's talks are built around. For talks sorted by length and by workplace, go to the safety topics library.
The year in safety talks
Guides that go with these talks
FAQ
December safety topics, answered
December is National Impaired Driving Prevention Month. SAMHSA says it has been observed for more than 40 years.
Handing over lockouts that stay on across the break, first aid cover on thin shifts, keeping exit doors clear of decorations and inspecting machines before they restart.
From February 1 to April 30 of the year after the one it covers. The year-end review and certification come first, which is why the log is worth closing in December.
Print 30 toolbox talks, one page each
For plants and warehouses, with a sign-in sheet. Free after one short form.
Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.
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