As part of the electrical trade, an electrician is in charge of installing and maintaining wiring for both commercial and residential buildings. This can lead to a number of dangerous situations. Dangerous situations that are all too common among those who work in this profession. In order to avoid the dangers that come with being an electrician, it’s important to know what they are. Fortunately for you, we will be going over some of the most common hazards faced by these professionals. As well as how you can avoid them, so that you may go into your new career without fear!
Becoming an electrician can be one of the most rewarding career decisions a person can make. Not only does it give you a skill to hone over many years, it gives you access to new and evolving technology and equipment that changes every year. It also gives you a certain confidence that what you do matters. Knowing you have knowledge of a subject that not many other people are familiar with. With all of that said, it can also be a dangerous job to have. Being an electrician is ranked within the top 20 most dangerous jobs in America. There are a number of hazards that electricians face every day. It’s important for any potential or current electrician to know what these are so they can take steps towards accident prevention.
At Electrician U we teach people to assess situations and minimize risk first and foremost. Working on live circuits most of the time is an unnecessary risk. But there are times where the needs of the job require it. In these cases, it’s important to be well trained in how to work on live circuits. As well as what PPE and procedures there are for doing so. NFPA 70E is a document the electrical industry uses as a standard for addressing what PPE you need, in which environments.
These are the top four injuries you may face going into the field as an electrician. For the purposes of this article, we kept things like ladder safety, falling through a ceiling, and general tool-related jobsite injury out of the equation. We will be focusing on injuries that are electrical in nature.
Shock hazard
One of the most common hazards we face as electricians is being shocked. Electric shock happens when there’s an electrical current that travels through your body. This can happen if you touch a live wire or metal object with bare skin. Introducing your body into the circuit, allowing current to flow through you. For this reason, electricians need to wear insulated gloves when working on live circuits. A layer of insulation between you and an electrical circuit allows you to work on live electrical equipment at a much lower risk.
Electrocution
Professionals in this field often face an extremely dangerous risk of electrocution. Typically when they fail to properly mitigate shock hazards. The difference between a shock and electrocution is that a shock can injure you, whereas electrocution means severe injury or death. If shock hazards aren’t treated with the necessary caution, there is the risk of having a worker come into contact with an electrical current. Causing current to run through their body, causing life-threatening injury or death. An example of electrocution would be if a person were to hold on to a live circuit conductor with one hand, and another conductive path with the other hand. If an electrical potential exists between the two paths, current will flow across the chest, through the heart. Which can cause ventricular fibrillation (heart attack).
Arc Flash
One of the most dangerous risks to take as an electrician is to put yourself in a situation where the possibility of an arc flash exists. An arc flash occurs when a flashover of electric current leaves its intended path. Traveling through the air from one conductor to another. For example, as a result of shock hazards created during electrical maintenance work on live/energized wires. Electricity in this circumstance is creating an arc of flowing current and can have a strong thermal force depending on what is on either side of the arc. If enough current passes through a person who touches it, they could get burns from scalp to feet, experience physical paralysis from the current’s shock, have a heart attack, or even die instantly.
Short Circuit and Ground-Fault Conditions
The last possibility is the fault. A fault arises when two parts of a live circuit touch inappropriately. A short circuit is a type of fault where two hot (ungrounded) conductors come into contact with one another, or a hot (ungrounded) and neutral (grounded) do the same. A ground fault is where both, a hot (ungrounded) and ground (equipment grounding) conductor, come into contact with each other. At higher voltages and currents, a fault can fill an entire room with a fireball and vaporized metal instantaneously. This is why it is crucial to wear proper PPE and understand the dangers of working on live circuits.
Vetting the Company You Work For
Would you want to work for a company that would knowingly endanger your life? Of course not! But electrical contractors face this risk every day. It’s true, electrical firms must follow proper safety regulations and train their employees on the dangers of live electricity, and how to handle it safely. Many of these companies do. But unfortunately, there are some who don’t care about training, regulation, or electrical safety at all. There are many companies that have a culture of “macho” electricians. These types take pride in working on live circuits and often chastise people who don’t. These companies are ready and willing to put your life in danger rather than taking extra time to make sure all risks have been removed. Which means you should never work for such an employer.
These types of employers will take advantage of any gaps in PPE standards by cutting corners and providing only inadequate equipment. They typically do not take pride in their workmanship either. Often their reason for ‘working unsafe’ is because they’re in a hurry to finish. Also, many of these individuals do not have strong values for either quality and/or customer service. If they don’t care about a lot of things, that’s ok. But they should still always care about their, and your, safety at all times. On the flip side, you will find employers that take the safety of their employees with the utmost seriousness. Such employers will take on the responsibility to provide proper training and meet PPE standards. Supplying all staff with the necessary equipment.
It’s not uncommon for companies like these to hold safety meetings and set aside time to assess situations where someone could get hurt. How safe you feel on a job should be of paramount importance when working with something that can kill you. If you feel unsafe, speaking up is always the right answer. If an employer doesn’t respect that or makes you feel inferior, it may be time to find another company to work for.
When making these decisions on what type of employer to work for, remember: quality trumps quantity when it comes to working on electrical systems. Sure, there are jobs where quantity and production rate are very important. Typically in a construction environment when live circuits are not present. But when working on or near live systems, quality and safety are the most important thing to keep in front of you. Always assess the risks and make sure the juice is worth the squeeze if you do decide to work on energized equipment.
