How to Reduce Slips and Falls Around the Truck

Driving a truck can be dangerous in and of itself. However, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and Occupational Health and Safety Administration, more of the nonfatal injuries and illnesses in the trucking industry are fall-related than from collisions or other motor vehicle incidents. According to statistics from OSHA, nearly one-third of all nonfatal injuries in the trucking industry in 2019 were fall-related. 

While the injuries from motor vehicle collisions are often more severe, they are rarer than those sustained from falls in the trucking industry. It is critical to protect yourself and your truck drivers’ health from fall-related injuries around the vehicle or machine they are operating and ensure they are safer when using it. 

At Rigid Lifelines, we are proud to meet these needs with our commercial trucking fall protection systems! Besides using our high-quality equipment, here are some additional measures you can take to prevent and reduce slips and falls around heavy trucks and machinery at your workplace. 

Be Aware of Slippery Conditions and Hazards Around the Truck

While fall restraint and arrest systems are a significant part of workplace injury prevention, common sense and situational awareness are also vital. Practical habits cannot prevent all accidents, but they can keep easily avoidable ones from occurring. Take a moment to consider any weather conditions contributing to slippery, icy, or uneven ground or surfaces, obstacles you may trip over, and other hazards that can lead to falls and injuries. 

In some cases, taking stock of your surroundings may only require a quick look around to ensure the area is safe and free from hazards. Other situations may call for a more thorough inspection and extra caution, such as: 

• Rain on metal surfaces 
• Freezing rain on any surface 
• Ice underneath snow
• The presence of slippery substances like oil and grease 
• Carrying a bulky item that partially blocks your line of sight 
• Walking on an uneven or precarious surface off the ground 
• A cluttered area near where you have parked your truck

Moreover, if it is dark out when you are walking or working around your truck, use a flashlight to ensure you don’t trip over hidden objects or slide on an unexpectedly slippery surface. 

Don’t Jump From Any Surface to Another

When you drive a truck for your profession, your schedule is sure to be busy and fast-paced. In particularly hectic times, you may feel tempted to take shortcuts to accomplish everything on your to-do list as quickly as possible, such as jumping from one surface to another instead of carefully considering the safest way to get there without falling and injuring yourself. While the impulse to streamline and reduce unnecessary interruptions in your workflow is understandable, doing so should never override careful consideration of your safety. 

Always take the time to watch your step and carefully consider the safest ways of getting from point A to point B, whether between the truck and trailer, loading docks, or out of the truck box. The time saved by jumping in such situations is minimal at best and would significantly increase your risk of a fall and subsequent injury, which would more than likely adversely affect your busy schedule. 

Not only does jumping increase your risk of injury from a fall, but it’s also harder on your joints, bones, and muscles, which must absorb the impact from the landing. As a result, jumping between surfaces also increases your risk for developing chronic repetitive strain injuries like jumper’s knee, also known as patellar tendinitis. With that in mind, we recommend that you save jumping for the basketball court or trampoline. 

Use Three Points of Contact for Climbing Around the Truck

Being cautious and watching your step when traversing different surfaces around your truck may seem like common-sense advice. However, it is best to also follow approved methods, such as using three points of contact, which is a climbing technique recognized and recommended by OSHA. This technique is prevalent in many kinds of climbing, from rock climbing to roofing, and is also beneficial for climbing around your truck, tractor, trailer, or loading dock. 

In using this fall protection approach, ensure at least three of your limbs have support from a surface with a reliable load-bearing capacity whenever you are climbing on multi-level surfaces. The three supported limbs can include either two arms and one leg or two legs and one arm, depending on where you determine the most reliable surfaces are as you climb. 

Next time you feel an impulse to jump from one surface to another or clamber around your truck as quickly as possible to save time, remember the three-point contact rule and determine the best way of employing that technique to safely get from A to B, whether you are performing tasks like:

• Entering or exiting the cab 
• Connecting electrical and brake lines between truck or tractor and trailer 
• Securing a load 
• Closing a hatch 
• Examining mechanical issues  

Doing so may take an extra minute or two, but will provide considerable savings in time and money by preventing potential injuries. 

Ensure the Use of a Proper Fall Protection Safety System

Even the most safety-minded individuals can fall and experience an injury when climbing around their heavy truck or tractor or walking on a slippery surface, so you cannot always rely on proper technique and common sense alone for sufficient fall protection. If you professionally operate a heavy truck or tractor and frequently climb around the machine for maintenance and other duties or have employees who do, consider investing in a rigid rail fall protection system. 

A rigid rail fall protection system is generally a solid fixed structure with tag lines, anchor trolleys, self-retracting lifelines, fall arrest harnesses, connecting devices, and other features that ensure heavy equipment operators can be safer when they climb around and perform maintenance on heavy machinery. In this way, a proper rigid rail fall protection system offers additional peace of mind.

There are various rigid rail fall protection systems available on the market today, including ceiling-mounted monorail systems, inverted-L systems, inverted-U systems, T-frames, and swing-arm systems. At Rigid Lifelines, we provide all these rigid rail systems and more, plus custom permanent rigid rail systems. Review the features, recommended applications, and general requirements for each of those rigid rail fall protection systems below. 

Ceiling-Mounted Monorail Systems

• Always mounts to an existing support structure
• Ideal application for narrow bays with minimal floor space
• Simple assembly — no welding required
• Standard Anchor Trolley™
• Workers can move up to 30 feet off the center area for increased coverage

Inverted-L Systems

• Arms generally reach between six and 12 feet, though you can customize distance specifications
• Columns can be up to 50 feet apart
• Frames come with a freestanding column and header
• Highly ergonomic, quiet, and smooth movement
• Quick field assembly — no welding required
• Concrete foundations required for proper installation
• Standard Anchor Trolley™
• Standard trolley-hook height up to 22 feet — custom heights are available
• Systems can support up to four workers at one time — higher capacities are available with customization

Inverted-U Systems

• Arms generally reach between six and 12 feet, with customized options available
• Columns can be up to 50 feet apart
• Frames come with two freestanding columns and headers
• Highly ergonomic, quiet, and smooth movement
• Quick field assembly — no welding required
• Sometimes require concrete foundations, depending on the rail system’s size
• Standard Anchor Trolley™
• Standard trolley-hook height up to 22 feet — custom heights are available
• Width distances range from 20 to 40 feet — custom distances are available

T-Frames

• Can service two vehicles simultaneously with one system
• Columns can be up to 50 feet apart
• Each frame comes with one freestanding column and header
• Highly ergonomic, quiet, and smooth movement
• Quick field assembly — no welding required
• Sometimes require concrete foundations, depending on the exact system requirements
• Standard Anchor Trolley™
• Standard trolley-hook height up to 22 feet — custom heights are available
• Width distances range from 20 to 40 feet — custom distances are available

Swing-Arm Systems

• Column-mounted, freestanding, and portable-base swing arms are ideal for different job sites and needs.
• Highly ergonomic, quiet, and smooth movement over a circular area of coverage
• Mast and track arm weldments fabricated and reinforced with wide flange steel
• Standard anchor trolley™
• Standard trolley-hook heights between 10 and 30 feet — custom heights are available
• Swing arms generally reach between five and 30 feet, with customized options available
• Trolley remains directly above user at all times to minimize the risk of swing falls

Other rigid rail system options we provide at Rigid Lifelines include Griffin systems, Column-Mounted Fold-Away systems, and Post-Suspension systems. We welcome you to click on the links to learn more about those as well!

Be Aware of OSHA Laws and Regulations — Fall Protection Required for Anything Above 4 Feet

In the case of a fall-related injury or OSHA inspection where fall protection is absent or fails to meet OSHA and ANSI standards, your company could be liable to hefty fines or denied injury coverage due to unsafe work practices. When working from heights, it’s critical to be aware of the relevant OSHA laws and regulations to avoid falls and injuries, shield yourself from pricey penalties, and ensure you receive coverage if a fall-related injury occurs. 

Non-compliance fines from OSHA for inadequate fall protection apparatus in a workplace currently range from $13,653 to $136,532, depending on whether the penalized act was intentional or a repeated offense. 

The primary OSHA requirement regarding fall protection for workers and employers in general industry workplaces, including the trucking industry, is that fall protection is necessary for any task where the worker needs to be four feet above the ground or higher. Some other OSHA guidelines and requirements for fall protection and the trucking industry are as follows:

• Employers must provide workers with a workspace free from any known hazards and train employees about job site hazards in a language they speak and understand.
• Every hole in a floor through which a worker can fall should have a covering, through either a regulation guardrail, a toe-board, or a floor cover.
• Floors should remain as clean and dry as possible.
• Every open-sided and elevated floor, platform, or runway should have guardrails and toe-boards.
• Likewise, guardrails and toe-boards should also be in place wherever there is a risk that a worker could fall into or onto dangerous equipment, machines, or substances.
• Required personal protective equipment should be available to workers at no additional cost to them.

OSHA guidelines and requirements are there to keep everyone safer, so familiarizing yourself with them will help you make the best decisions for safety as a truck driver and anyone you employ. 

Look After Yourself and Avoid Fatigue

Finally, take care of yourself! Life gets busy, and the truck driving profession can be taxing at times, which is why it is vital to practice healthy self-care whenever you have the time and space to do so. 

When you are tired, overburdened, and stressed, your risk of a fall-related injury or driving accident is markedly higher. One of the most critical things you can do to prevent falls and injuries at the workplace is to consistently take care of yourself and get the rest you need to work safely and be productive.

Learn About Our Truck-Related Fall Protection Systems

This page is a beneficial introduction to Rigid Lifelines’ truck-related fall protection solutions, but there is a lot more to learn if you would like to do so. We welcome you to browse our product line of truck-related fall protection systems, including rigid rail systems and safety harnesses, or contact one of our representatives to find out which Rigid Lifelines products will work best for what you need.