A Field Level Hazard Assessment (FLHA) is one of the most important tools for preventing incidents on construction, industrial, and field-based worksites across Canada and the United States. Yet despite its importance, many workers see the FLHA as “just another form,” leading to rushed assessments, missed hazards, and preventable injuries. To build a stronger safety culture, companies need a simple, practical way to teach crews how to use FLHAs as a real planning tool—not a compliance checklist.
A Field Level Hazard Assessment (FLHA) is a step-by-step process workers use to identify hazards, assess risks, and choose the controls needed to complete the work safely. An FLHA form empowers workers to “Stop and Think” before they start a task, reducing incidents and building strong safety habits on any worksite across Canada, the United States, and major construction regions.
FLHA forms help workers build a consistent habit of connecting tasks → hazards → controls, which is the foundation of proactive safety.
The definition is simple, but getting true worker buy-in is the hard part.
On many jobsites, tasks repeat day after day. This creates the perfect conditions for:
complacency
pencil-whipping hazard assessments
missed hazards
increased risk
Workers often see the FLHA as “just another piece of paperwork,” instead of a valuable safety and planning tool.
The goal is to shift your team’s mindset from compliance… to ownership.
To get meaningful FLHAs, workers need to complete them in real time, not based on what they did yesterday.
Encourage crews to look at each day with fresh eyes and ask:
What is different today?
What hazards exist right now?
Has the worksite changed since yesterday?
This simple mindset shift dramatically reduces missed hazards and helps workers treat the FLHA as part of job planning—not paperwork.
Workers sometimes ask: “Why do we have to write it? Why can’t we just look around?”
Because the science is clear:
Our brains retain information better when we write it down.
Writing strengthens:
awareness
hazard retention
follow-through
accountability
Every minute spent writing an FLHA strengthens the worker’s connection to their tasks and safety responsibilities for the day.
One of the biggest contributors to workplace injuries across North America is incomplete or rushed FLHAs.
Most incidents and near misses have a direct causal factor tied to:
a missed hazard
an incorrect assumption
an incomplete hazard assessment
Workers miss hazards for many reasons: inexperience, complacency, distraction, or simply not understanding the value of the FLHA.
To fix this, you need to teach your team that the FLHA is not something they fill out for the company, it’s something they complete for themselves.
Below is a practical approach you can train across your construction, field, industrial, or oil & gas worksites.
Workers should begin by writing out all task steps for the day:
preparing for work
gathering tools, equipment, and PPE
performing tasks (based on real-time conditions)
end-of-day cleanup and closeout
This first step dramatically reduces disorganization and missed steps.
For each task step, workers should identify:
what tools are required
what equipment is required
what PPE is required
This prevents:
unnecessary trips back to the tool crib
lost time
workers performing tasks without proper PPE
Adding this to the FLHA improves both safety and productivity.
Workers should walk the worksite and document:
task-specific hazards
environmental hazards
site condition changes
equipment hazards
worker proximity hazards
As conditions change, the FLHA should be updated:
Are new hazards present?
Do we need different PPE now?
Has the plan changed?
This makes the FLHA a living document used throughout the shift—not just at the beginning.
Supervisors play a key role in reinforcing positive FLHA habits.
A supervisor review provides:
coaching opportunities
confirmation that hazards were identified correctly
clarity on task sequencing
reinforcement of worker planning
When supervisors understand the FLHA as a planning tool, the entire team benefits.
Photos help workers:
document real hazards
capture task progress
show safe work practices
communicate changes quickly
support training and investigations
With digital FLHAs, photos become part of the worker’s safety story for the day.
If you’re considering taking your FLHA process digital, Safety Evolution makes it easy.
With digital FLHAs, your team can:
quickly complete hazard assessments on any device
attach photos
risk rank hazards
automatically store documentation
give supervisors real-time visibility
keep contractors, inspectors, and clients signed on
reduce paperwork and administrative time
This ensures your FLHA process is consistent across jobsites, from urban construction to remote industrial sites.
If you want:
workers to take FLHAs seriously
supervisors to reinforce better planning
digital forms that improve accuracy
real-time visibility into hazards
less paperwork and fewer missed steps
We can help you transform your FLHA process.
See how Safety Evolution can help you modernize your hazard assessment process across all your worksites.
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