Safety talks by month
June safety topics for plants and warehouses
June is National Safety Month, and it carries more dates than any other month on this list. National Forklift Safety Day, the start of the Atlantic hurricane season and Lightning Safety Awareness Week all fall here. Heat is now a daily condition, and temporary and summer workers are on the floor. Lift trucks and heat take most of these nine talks.
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Print 30 toolbox talks, one page each
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June 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 June
National Safety Month
All of June
National Forklift Safety Day
Set each year. Listed as June 7 to 8 for 2027.
Atlantic hurricane season begins
June 1. The season runs to November 30.
Lightning Safety Awareness Week
A week in June that varies. It was June 21 to 27 in 2026.
Days it can fall onDate set by the organiser each year
National Safety Month
When: All of June
Who runs it: National Safety Council (NSC)
Run since 1996. NSC sets a topic for each week and the topics change every year, so check its page for the current list.
National Forklift Safety Day
When: Set each year. Listed as June 7 to 8 for 2027.
Who runs it: Industrial Truck Association
The natural day for the pre-use check talk, given at the trucks.
Source for National Forklift Safety Day (opens in a new tab)
Atlantic hurricane season begins
When: June 1. The season runs to November 30.
Who runs it: NOAA National Hurricane Center
For Gulf and Atlantic coast sites. Inland plants can skip the hurricane talk.
Source for Atlantic hurricane season begins (opens in a new tab)
Lightning Safety Awareness Week
When: A week in June that varies. It was June 21 to 27 in 2026.
Who runs it: National Weather Service
Held since 2001. Aim the talk at yard, dock apron and roof work.
Source for Lightning Safety Awareness Week (opens in a new tab)
9 safety talks for June
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. The pre-use truck check
The hazard: OSHA requires industrial trucks to be examined before being placed in service, at least daily, and after each shift where they run around the clock. A truck with a defect is taken out of service until it is repaired.
What to say: Do the check before the first lift, not on paper at the end. If the horn, brakes, forks or chains are not right, park it, tag it and tell me.
Ask the crew: What was the last defect you found on a pre-use check?
2. When were you last evaluated
The hazard: A license issued years ago says little about how someone drives today. OSHA requires each operator's performance to be evaluated at least once every three years.
What to say: An evaluation is someone watching you drive your truck in your area. If yours is due this year, I will tell you the date.
Ask the crew: When were you last watched and signed off on the truck you drive now?
Source: OSHA, 29 CFR 1910.178(l)(4)(iii) (opens in a new tab)
3. Before the truck enters the trailer
The hazard: A trailer that rolls while a lift truck is inside takes the truck and the driver with it. OSHA requires the brakes of highway trucks to be set and the wheels chocked while they are boarded with powered industrial trucks.
What to say: Before the first pallet, look for yourself. Brakes set, wheels chocked. Then look at the trailer floor before you drive on it.
Ask the crew: Who checks the chocks at your door: you, the yard driver or nobody?
4. Heat illness: when to call 911
The hazard: OSHA lists confusion, slurred speech, unconsciousness and seizures as signs of a heat emergency. Its first aid guidance is to cool the person with cold water or an ice bath and never to leave them alone.
What to say: If someone in the heat is confused or slurring, call 911 and start cooling them. OSHA's rule is that when in doubt, you call. Somebody stays with them.
Ask the crew: Where is the nearest ice or cold water to your station?
Source: OSHA, Heat-related Illnesses and First Aid (opens in a new tab)
5. Drink before you are thirsty
The hazard: By the time someone feels thirsty on a hot line, they are already behind. OSHA's advice is to drink water frequently, not only when thirsty.
What to say: Take water at every break and between breaks. You do not need permission to walk to the water point in hot weather.
Ask the crew: How many times did you drink water last shift?
Source: OSHA, Heat: Water. Rest. Shade. (opens in a new tab)
6. PPE holds heat in
The hazard: OSHA notes that clothing or protective gear can reduce the body's ability to lose heat. Coveralls, aprons, sleeves and respirators all count.
What to say: If your job needs heavy PPE, you get more breaks. You do not take the PPE off. Tell me before you feel unwell, not after.
Ask the crew: Which job here has the most PPE in the hottest spot?
7. Temporary and summer workers
The hazard: June brings agency temps and students. OSHA holds the staffing agency and the host employer jointly responsible for their safety, and the host covers the training specific to its own site.
What to say: If someone new is working next to you, show them the exit, the emergency stop and who to ask. Tell me if they were given a job nobody trained them on.
Ask the crew: Who near you started in the last two weeks?
Source: OSHA, Protecting Temporary Workers (opens in a new tab)
8. Thunder means come inside
The hazard: Yard staff and anyone on a roof are exposed in a storm. The National Weather Service says to get to a substantial building or a metal-topped vehicle when you hear thunder, and to stay there for 30 minutes after the last thunder.
What to say: When you hear thunder, yard and roof work stops and you come in. I restart it 30 minutes after the last thunder, not when the rain stops.
Ask the crew: Where is the nearest shelter from the far end of the yard?
Source: National Weather Service, Lightning Safety Tips (opens in a new tab)
9. Hurricane plan for coastal sites
The hazard: The Atlantic season opens on June 1. OSHA's hurricane guidance says a plan should name the conditions that activate it and the chain of command.
What to say: This is who decides we shut down, and how you will hear about it. Make sure your phone number on file is right.
Ask the crew: How would you find out the plant was closed for a storm?
A week-by-week plan for June
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 | Hurricane season opens on June 1. Inland sites give the truck talk alone. | |
| Week 2 | Around National Forklift Safety Day. | |
| Week 3 | Three short heat talks on three hot days. | |
| Week 4 | Lightning week usually falls late in the month, and the summer hires have arrived. |
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
June safety topics, answered
June is National Safety Month. The National Safety Council has run it since 1996.
NSC sets them each year and they change, so they are not listed here. Check nsc.org/nsm for the current year, then pick talks from this page that match.
In June. The Industrial Truck Association sets the date each year and lists June 7 to 8 for 2027.
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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