Workplace Safety and Ergonomics Checklist

Check the dish-pit floor, line mats, walk-in entry, and host-stand transition for grease, water, and torn mats. Slips on a wet line account for the largest share of restaurant workers' comp claims; replace any anti-fatigue mat with curled edges and re-stage wet-floor signs near the dish return.

For each hazard, note the location, the fix, who owns it, and the deadline. Photograph the corrected condition once resolved — this is the documentation an OSHA inspector or workers' comp carrier will ask for.

Confirm Class K extinguishers are within 30 feet of cooking equipment and ABC extinguishers are mounted on every floor. Inspection tag must be punched within the last 12 months and the gauge needle in the green. Untagged or expired extinguishers are an automatic fire-marshal citation.

NFPA 96 requires semi-annual inspection of the wet-chemical hood system by a licensed contractor. Verify the service tag on the control box, the manual pull station is unobstructed, and fusible links are clean of grease build-up.

Every exit must open from the inside without a key, tool, or special knowledge. Push the test button on each emergency-light battery pack; confirm illumination for the full 90-second test. Common gotcha: kitchen back door propped or chained from the inside during prep.

Required Feb 1 through April 30 in a conspicuous employee area for any establishment with 10+ employees. Also confirm the federal/state labor-law poster, tip-credit notice, and minimum-wage poster are current and legible.

Use soapy water on supply-line fittings; bubbles indicate a leak. Confirm pilots light cleanly, burners produce blue flame (yellow means combustion problem), and the fryer thermostat shuts off at set temp. Schedule a gas-fitter visit within 48 hours for any leak detected.

Shut off the gas at the affected appliance and tag it out of service until repaired. Do not let the line run on a leaking unit through the next service — this is both a fire risk and a CO exposure risk for cooks at the station.

Knives stored in magnetic strips or knife blocks — never loose in a drawer or soaking in the dish sink. Confirm cut-resistant gloves are stocked at the prep station and mandolin is paired with its safety guard. The most common BOH ER visit is a hand laceration during dish-pit cleanup of an unseen knife.

OSHA Hazard Communication Standard requires an SDS for every chemical on premises — degreaser, sanitizer, oven cleaner, dish detergent. Binder must be accessible to staff during their shift. Confirm chemicals are stored away from food and labeled when transferred to secondary containers.

Hot-oil burns are among the most severe BOH injuries. Confirm the oil-filter caddy is in working order, oil-disposal container has a sealed lid, and cooks have heat-resistant gloves available. Oil should never be carried across the line at temperature.

Prep surfaces should sit at roughly elbow height for the cook working the station — too low forces stooping, too high forces shoulder strain. Anti-fatigue mats need to be intact, lay flat, and be cleaned weekly underneath. Note any station where the cook is shorter or taller than the surface fits.

Cover the named cases: 50-lb flour sacks, full stockpots, full bus tubs, full keg moves. Two-person lift required for anything over 50 lb or awkwardly shaped. Demo the bend-knees-hip-hinge form on a sack of rice during the pre-shift, not in a slide deck.

Repetitive scrubbing, slicing, and plating drive carpal-tunnel and rotator-cuff claims. Build the schedule so no employee runs the same repetitive station for more than three consecutive shifts. Document the rotation on the posted schedule so it survives a shift swap.

Capture the date, topic, and signed roster for any safety or ergonomics training delivered this cycle. This is the record OSHA asks for after an incident — verbal coaching without sign-in is not defensible.

Walk the chef and FOH manager through anything still open from earlier in the cycle. Assign one named owner per item with a deadline before the next monthly walk; unowned items disappear.