Warehouse Safety, PPE, and Lift Equipment Basics

What the work looks like

A warehouse floor has three zones: receiving (trucks unload inbound freight), storage (racks and bulk floor), and shipping (outbound staging and dock). Forklifts and pallet jacks move between all three, and pedestrians share aisles with them. The single biggest cause of warehouse injury is forklift-pedestrian contact, so the safety rules focus on separating the two.

Safety and tools

PPE: safety glasses, hi-vis Class 2 vest or shirt, steel-toe or composite-toe boots, cut-resistant gloves for unpacking. Hearing protection near dock motors, conveyor motors, and any power equipment. Respirators are rare but may be needed for dusty bulk operations.

Forklift safety (OSHA 1910.178):

• Only certified operators drive a forklift. Certification is training plus a hands-on evaluation, renewed every 3 years.
• Seat belts on.
• Horn at every blind corner.
• Loads tilted back and low during travel (no more than 4 to 6 inches off the floor).
• Never exceed the data plate capacity for the load center shown.
• Use the parking brake and lower forks to the ground before leaving the seat.

Pedestrian safety: stay in painted walkways, make eye contact with operators, never walk behind a backing forklift, never ride on forks. Pedestrians have right of way only in clearly marked crossings.

Lift equipment overview:

• Pallet jack (manual): moves palletized loads up to about 5,500 pounds on flat floors.
• Electric pallet jack (walkie/rider): same job, longer travel, often used in picking.
• Counterbalance forklift: the classic sit-down lift, up to 5,000 or 6,000 pound capacity.
• Reach truck: stand-up, deep-racking, warehouse-aisle machine.
• Order picker: stand-up, operator rides up with the fork platform to pick cases from high racks.

Dock safety: always chock truck wheels, engage the dock lock, and confirm the trailer is set before stepping onto it. Never drive onto an unchocked trailer.

Your first exercise

Find the Amazon Warehouse Safety 101 or OSHA Powered Industrial Truck online module. Watch through the forklift section. Then on your first day, identify in your facility where every AED, fire extinguisher, eyewash station, and emergency exit is located.

Where to go next

Build depth in Forklift Operation, Pallet Jack Operation, Loading Dock Operations, and Material Handling. Process skills: Order Picking & Packing, Shipping & Receiving, Inventory Management, Warehouse Management Systems (Introduction to Warehouse Management Systems). Cross-cutting safety: Workplace Safety, Fall Protection, Lockout/Tagout (LOTO), Hazardous Materials Handling.