What is the difference between hazard assessment and risk assessment?

What is the difference between hazard assessment and risk assessment?

• A. Hazard assessment identifies hazards; risk assessment evaluates likelihood and consequence of harm from those hazards.
• B. Hazard assessment evaluates probability; risk assessment identifies hazards.
• C. Hazard assessment is about controls; risk assessment is about training.
• D. Hazard assessment only counts near-misses.

Answer: (A)

Hazard assessment means identifying potential sources of harm in the workplace—things like exposed wiring, slippery floors, or chemical spills. It’s about listing what could cause injury or illness, not judging how likely it is to happen or how bad the outcome could be. Risk assessment takes those identified hazards and gauges the likelihood that harm will occur and how severe that harm could be, considering factors like how often people are exposed, the duration of exposure, and the effectiveness of existing controls. This helps prioritize which hazards need controls first. For example, a hazard assessment might identify a potential fall hazard from working at height. A risk assessment would then evaluate how likely a fall is given how often workers are exposed to that height and what the possible injury could be, guiding decisions about guardrails, harnesses, or work procedures. The other options mix up these roles or focus on unrelated elements, such as probability alone, identifying hazards instead of evaluating risk, focusing on controls or training in the wrong way, or limiting hazard work to near-misses.

Hazard assessment means identifying potential sources of harm in the workplace—things like exposed wiring, slippery floors, or chemical spills. It’s about listing what could cause injury or illness, not judging how likely it is to happen or how bad the outcome could be. Risk assessment takes those identified hazards and gauges the likelihood that harm will occur and how severe that harm could be, considering factors like how often people are exposed, the duration of exposure, and the effectiveness of existing controls. This helps prioritize which hazards need controls first.

For example, a hazard assessment might identify a potential fall hazard from working at height. A risk assessment would then evaluate how likely a fall is given how often workers are exposed to that height and what the possible injury could be, guiding decisions about guardrails, harnesses, or work procedures.

The other options mix up these roles or focus on unrelated elements, such as probability alone, identifying hazards instead of evaluating risk, focusing on controls or training in the wrong way, or limiting hazard work to near-misses.