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Job safety analysis
Definition
A job safety analysis (JSA) is a preventive technique in which a specific job or task is broken down into a sequence of steps, the potential hazards of each step are identified, and preventive measures or controls are determined for each hazard, with results communicated to everyone performing the job. The terms job hazard analysis and job hazard breakdown describe the same procedure.
References
Definition, five basic steps, job selection criteria, worksheet format
JSA/JHA equivalence and industry application
Overview
What it means
Workers perform steps under real constraints, not abstract "projects", so risk control must be placed at the exact point of exposure. The JSA worksheet — step, hazard, preventive measure — turns risk management into a task-level tool.
Jobs are prioritised for analysis by incident frequency and severity, injury potential, and whether the job is new or modified; analyses are revised when equipment, materials or conditions change.
How it is used
Supervisors, safety professionals and experienced workers jointly complete JSAs in construction, manufacturing, mining and maintenance, typically for high-risk or non-routine and permit-linked tasks, and use them for pre-task briefings.
Why it matters
Task-level hazard control is a core element of occupational safety management systems (e. g. ISO 45001) and a leading-indicator activity that prevents injuries before they occur.