Workplace incident investigation

An investigation should produce an account supported by evidence and changes that address the conditions involved. Start with the practical investigation guide, then explore methods for testing explanations, interviewing employees and connecting an investigation with broader learning.

The guides distinguish observations, witness accounts and interpretations. They also ask what protective controls were expected to do, what they actually did and how the organization will verify an improvement. The collection includes practical worksheets, but a completed form alone does not establish a sound conclusion.

Read the collection

• How to Conduct a Workplace Incident Investigation

  Learn how to conduct a workplace incident investigation using evidence, timelines, interviews, control analysis, and corrective actions that address underlying conditions.

• Root Cause Analysis vs. Learning From Events

  Learn the strengths and limits of root cause analysis and how learning from events can reveal multiple contributing conditions, control weaknesses, and how work actually happens.

• 5 Whys Alternatives for Safety Investigations

  Explore practical alternatives to the 5 Whys for safety investigations, including barrier analysis, change analysis, cause mapping, bow-ties, fault trees, and Learning Teams.

• How to Interview Employees After a Workplace Incident

  Learn how to interview employees after a workplace incident using open-ended questions, neutral language, timely interviews, and evidence-based follow-up.

• After the event, establish what the controls actually did

  Start with a supported account, then test the controls before deciding what to change.

• A Trailer-Ramp Incident: Following the Evidence Beyond the Immediate Action

  A firsthand investigation account examines a stuck latch, inspection follow-through and reported equipment changes, with clear limits on the available evidence.

• Hoeganaes: Learning From Repeated Dust Fires and a Hydrogen Explosion

  A revised analysis separates CSB findings from author interpretation and examines hazard recognition, controls and the limits of historical standards references.

Written by Todd Jerome Jenkins, MS, CSP. The current collection is not peer reviewed. See the editorial policy and review status.