OSHA’s Hierarchy of Controls has five levels of control: Elimination, Substitution, Engineering, Administrative and PPE. Administrative controls rank No. 4 on their scale due to the effectiveness and efficiency of hazard controls. The first three tend to be more effective and desired, but administrative controls are still vital.
Administrative controls are defined as changes in work procedures to reduce the duration, frequency or intensity of exposure to hazards. These controls involve policies, procedures, training and work practices. Administrative controls are designed to change the way people work. These controls do not eliminate the risk or even lessen the risk. However, this type of control provides workers with options on dealing with the hazards of the job.
Control methods
Training – Training allows you to identify hazards, understand hazard exposure and provides safe practices to mitigate injuries.
Work practices – Developing safe work practices is important to working safely every day.
Maintenance – Having a maintenance schedule for tools and equipment can keep them running correctly and safely.
Housekeeping – Maintaining a clean and clutter-free work area will greatly reduce the risk of injury and can minimize the severity of an incident.
Signs and labels – Warning signs can be posted on walls and labels on containers to make you aware of the hazards.
Policies and Procedures – Written policies and procedures are provided to help you maintain a safe environment.
Scheduling – Limiting the time a worker is exposed to a hazard or scheduling high-risk exposures during off hours to reduce staff exposure.
Rotating – Rotating employees between jobs so one worker is not singularly exposed for a full shift.
Medical surveillance – Providing medical surveillance to monitor a worker’s health.
A main reason why administrative controls are not as effective is that they depend on human behavior. These controls can be easily undermined by employees who choose not to follow procedures, fail to conduct maintenance when needed, ignore warnings, become complacent or take shortcuts. This is one of the reasons they are considered less effective than the top 3 in the Hierarchy of Controls. Nonetheless, they are critically important.
