Ladder Safety Toolbox Talk

Project: ____________ · Date: ____________ · Led by: ____________

A ladder is the most familiar tool on this site — and that's exactly why it kills. Roughly one in three fatal falls in construction involves a ladder, and most of those falls are from under 20 feet.

Why it matters

Nobody plans to fall off a ladder; people fall because the ladder was the wrong tool, set up wrong, or used with full hands and a hurry. Every one of those is a choice we can make differently in the next ten seconds of setup.

Key points — cover all of these

1. Pick the right ladder for the job — right height (never stand on the top two rungs of a stepladder), right duty rating for you plus your tools.
2. Set extension ladders at a 4-to-1 angle: one foot out for every four feet up. Feet on firm, level ground — never on blocks, buckets, or mud.
3. Extend the ladder 3 feet above the landing and tie it off at the top before climbing.
4. Keep 3-point contact — two hands and a foot, or two feet and a hand. Haul tools up with a rope or tool belt, never in your hands.
5. Stay between the rails. If you have to lean past a rail to reach the work, climb down and move the ladder.
6. Inspect before every use: cracked rails, bent rungs, missing feet, or paint hiding damage — tag it and take it out of service.

Ask the crew

The answers are the point — this is where today's real hazards surface.

• Where on this site today is someone likely to grab a ladder when a lift or scaffold would be safer?
• Who has seen a ladder set on uneven or soft ground here? What did we do about it?
• What's our system for tagging and removing a damaged ladder so nobody else uses it?

The one thing today

Before every climb today, stop and check: angle, footing, 3 feet above the landing, hands free.

Reference: OSHA 29 CFR 1926.1053 (ladders); 1926.1060 (training)

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