Survey Indicates Despite Training, Most Trained Workers Experience Electrical Shock

A survey performed by Littelfuse, Inc., a global manufacturer of technologies in circuit protection, power control and sensing, discovered that most personnel who work directly with electricity have experienced an electric shock while on the job, half of which by more than 220V.

The survey asked almost 600 people who work directly with electricity questions about their knowledge of, experience with, and attitude toward electric shock hazards. The results were then analyzed to help the industry gain an understanding of why worker injuries and fatalities occur each year from shock despite there being an electrical code in place.

“The survey results indicate that even the most trained employees — those who work directly with electricity — believe it is safe to work on or near equipment up to 500V, when in fact it’s not,” says Peter Kim, vice president and general manager, Littelfuse Industrial Business Unit. “Too many fatalities occur each year due to electrical shock. Companies need to understand that human-based safety methods are not the most effective measures. Incident prevention requires more than PPE and safety training.”

A full report is available that discusses the survey findings such as:

Almost 90% of those who said they think 500V is a safe equipment to ground to work on or near have been provided with safety training by their company.
62% of those who said they consider up to 500V to be a safe working voltage reported having experienced electrical shock by more than 220V while on the job.
86% of those who said they have experienced electrical shock by more than 220V also rated themselves as either “very confident” or “extremely confident” in their ability to recognize an electrical hazard.
More than two-thirds of the respondents said that workers in their facility perform work on energized equipment.
Almost a quarter of the respondents said their facility does not send its electrical gloves to a laboratory for testing. Another quarter of the respondents said they were unsure if their facility tests them.

This report also provides an in-depth discussion of:

The prevalence of electric shock fatalities and the misconception that electric shock fatalities are steadily declining
Variables that impact the severity of an electric shock injury, and the long-term injuries of the body
Conditions where shock protection is not required by the National Electric Code but contain shock hazards that jeopardize workers’ safety
Safety by design and special-purpose ground fault circuit interrupters.

To read the report, visit Littelfuse.com/shock-survey-report.