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Forklift Training for the Competent Person

4.8(44 reviews)
Forklift Training for the Competent Person

Course Overview

This forklift competent person course trains whoever runs your forklift program on all seven truck classes. Four hours online covers stability, inspection, refueling, evaluation, records under 29 CFR 1910.178, the powered industrial truck standard.

  • Covers all seven truck classes and why moving an operator to a different truck type means refresher training.
  • Walks through seven practical exercises you run on site, from a cone circle to stacking pallets three high.
  • Includes eight downloads: an administrator manual, two program samples, an evaluation form, four checklists.

Note: This course does not provide a license to operate a forklift; this would necessitate physical, hands-on instruction.  This course is designed to provide an understanding of forklift safety, based on the OSHA standard.

  • 4 hours, self-paced
  • English & Español
  • Instant certificate
  • Mobile friendly

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$59.00

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Course Clips

Everything You Need to Know
About This Course

The course runs seven modules and 428 slides, narrated the whole way, and each module ends in a knowledge check that does not count toward your grade. The final exam is delivered separately, outside the course player.

  • Powered industrial truck terms and definitions.
  • The seven classes of powered industrial truck, Class I to Class VII.
  • Manufacturer designations D, DS, DY, E, ES, EE, EX, G, GS, LP and LPS.
  • Hazardous locations, divisions and groups.
  • Operator training and the three parts it takes to complete it.
  • Refresher training triggers and the three-year operator evaluation.
  • Truck-related training: controls, stability, attachments, refueling and battery charging.
  • Workplace-related training: pedestrians, ramps, docks, narrow aisles and elevators.
  • Maintenance, daily examination and removing a truck from service.
  • Writing the powered industrial truck program.
  • Setting up and scoring the practical exercises.
  • Recordkeeping and the operator training certification the employer signs.
  • Who does what: the program administrator, supervisors and operators.

OSHA StandardOSHA 29 CFR 1910.178
Course Duration4 hours
Format100% online, narrated with photos, video, and interactivity
Passing Score70% on final exam
CertificatePersonalized certificate, printable immediately upon passing
LanguagesEnglish and Spanish
Device CompatibilityDesktop, tablet, and smartphone
ProgressProgress saved automatically, stop and restart without losing your place
AcceptedOur courses meet federal standards, but state requirements may vary. Please verify before purchase.

This course is for the person who runs the forklift program, writes it down, and signs off that operators have been trained and evaluated. If you are the one driving the truck, forklift operator training is the course you want.

  • Safety managers who own the forklift program at one site or across several.
  • Warehouse and distribution center supervisors who assign operators to trucks.
  • Plant and production managers responsible for powered industrial truck training records.
  • The person your company puts in charge of writing the forklift safety program.
  • Whoever schedules and observes operator performance evaluations on your floor.
  • Maintenance supervisors who decide when a truck comes out of service.
  • EHS consultants setting up a forklift program for a client site.
  • Supervisors getting ready for an inspection of the forklift program.
  • Experienced operators their employer is moving into a training or program role.

Powered industrial trucks run in almost every operation that moves material by the pallet. Because the course teaches all seven classes, it fits sit-down riders, narrow-aisle machines, walkie pallet trucks and rough terrain forklifts alike.

  • Warehousing and distribution centers running narrow-aisle reach trucks and order pickers.
  • Manufacturing plants moving raw stock and finished pallets between lines.
  • Food and beverage processing, including cold storage running electric riders.
  • Building material and lumber yards running rough terrain forklifts.
  • Construction sites where telehandlers and rough terrain machines feed the work.
  • Freight terminals and cross-docks loading and unloading trailers.
  • Retail distribution and big-box back rooms using walkie pallet trucks.
  • Paper, packaging and printing operations handling rolls with clamp attachments.
  • Recycling and waste transfer stations.
  • Chemical and coatings plants where the atmosphere decides which truck can enter.
  • Ports and marine terminals moving containerized and break-bulk cargo.
  • Grain handling and agricultural operations running tractors and rough terrain trucks.

Experience the first 5 minutes of the course right here. No account or payment required.

Interactive Course Preview5-minute preview of Module 1, Forklift Training for the Competent Person. No login or payment required.

Which Forklift Course: Competent Person or Operator?

eTraining sells two forklift courses. Which one you need depends on whether you run the program or drive the truck.

  • Competent Person Forklift Safety Course. The page you are on. Four hours for the person who writes the forklift program, trains and evaluates operators, and keeps the records. Covers all seven truck classes and the practical exercises you set up on site.
  • Forklift Certification: Safety Training. The operator course, built for the people who actually drive: safe operation, load stability, pre-shift inspection and site hazards. This is the one you buy seats of for a crew. View the Forklift Certification: Safety Training
  • Competent Person Forklift Safety Course – Spanish. The same program-administration course delivered in Spanish, with the same seven modules and the same written program and evaluation materials. View the Competent Person Forklift Safety Course – Spanish
  • Competent Person Series. The rest of the series for the same buyer, including fall protection, scaffolding, trenching and confined space. View the Competent Person Series

 

How to Become a Forklift Trainer at Your Company

Your employer decides who trains and evaluates forklift operators. The standard describes that person, and this course is built directly on it.

  • The standard asks for knowledge, training and experience. 29 CFR 1910.178(l)(2)(iii) sets one test for whoever runs operator training and evaluation, and it has three parts: knowledge, training, experience. The employer judges it in context, against your own trucks and your own floor.
  • This course is the knowledge and the training. Four hours across seven modules, ending in a dated Certificate of Completion you can put in the file. The experience is the part you build on your own floor, and most buyers already have years of it.
  • Your employer designates you, and certifies the operators. Designating that person and authorizing operators are the employer's acts. So is the operator certification record, which names the operator, the training date, the evaluation date and who performed each. This course teaches you to produce it.
  • You leave with the forms, not just the reading. Seven practical exercises with the cone layouts and pallet counts written out, a driver performance test form, two sample written programs and four inspection checklists all come with the course.

Four hours, seven modules, and the paperwork your forklift program runs on. Fall protection, scaffolding and trenching are separate courses in the competent person course series, built the same way for the same buyer.

Verified Course Reviews

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4.8
Based on 44 reviews
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  1. Ronald Miller
    Forklift Training for the Competent PersonForklift Training for the Competent Person

    Great course

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  2. Joseph Harris
    Forklift Training for the Competent PersonForklift Training for the Competent Person

    ok

    (0) (0)

Stay Compliant. Stay Safe.

Complete your Forklift Training for the Competent Person at your own pace, on any device, with an instant certificate when you're done.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Everything you need to know about the Forklift Training for the Competent Person.

Yes. Upon passing the final exam with a score of 70% or higher, you can immediately print a certificate of completion. This certificate serves as proof of training for your employer.

Yes. The course is accessible on desktop computers, laptops, tablets, and smartphones. Progress saves automatically on the same device, so you can stop and resume where you left off.

  Forklift Training for the Competent Person is an OSHA-compliant training program covering 29 CFR 1910.178. It provides approximately 4 hours of instruction that expands on standard forklift operator training to include the duties and responsibilities of a competent person working on job sites with forklift activities. The course covers forklift operations, safety procedures, hazard recognition, inspection and maintenance procedures, and supervisory responsibilities. Upon completion, participants receive a certificate of completion.

OSHA requires that a competent person be present on every job site, including sites with forklift operations. Workers who need this training include designated competent persons for powered industrial truck operations, warehouse supervisors and foremen overseeing forklift activities, safety officers responsible for forklift safety programs, facility managers implementing OSHA compliance, and workers with supervisory responsibilities over forklift operators. The competent person must have knowledge of forklift hazards and the authority to take corrective action.

  The course requires approximately 4 hours of instruction time. Because it is self-paced, most students complete it within a few days to one week. You can complete the training over multiple sessions at your convenience. Progress is saved automatically, so you can stop and resume on the same device at any time.

   Forklift Training for the Competent Person takes all of the information covered in standard Forklift Safety Training and expands on it to include knowledge and training on the duties and responsibilities of the competent person working on job sites with forklift activities. Standard Forklift Safety Training is intended for general site workers and forklift operators, while the Competent Person course is designed for supervisors and designated safety personnel with oversight responsibilities. The competent person course provides the additional knowledge needed to supervise operations, conduct inspections, and ensure OSHA compliance.

  The course covers all topics from standard forklift operator training plus competent person responsibilities including forklift types and classifications, operating principles and controls, stability and load capacity, safe operating procedures, hazard recognition including tip-overs, pedestrian safety, and struck-by hazards, inspection requirements and procedures, maintenance and recordkeeping, training requirements for operators, supervisory responsibilities for ensuring safe operations, OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 compliance requirements, and the role and duties of the competent person in forklift operations. The training is designed to maximize retention with interactive content and comprehensive coverage.

   Yes. eTraining’s Forklift Training for the Competent Person course is developed directly from OSHA standard 29 CFR 1910.178 for forklift safety. You receive a certificate of completion upon passing that documents your training. The course is accepted by employers and helps satisfy OSHA’s requirement for competent persons on job sites with forklift operations.

  The forklift competent person is responsible for ensuring that forklift operators are properly trained and evaluated, conducting or overseeing daily pre-shift inspections of forklifts, identifying and correcting unsafe forklift operating conditions, ensuring compliance with OSHA 29 CFR 1910.178 requirements, maintaining training and inspection records, recognizing hazards such as inadequate clearances, unstable loads, or pedestrian traffic, enforcing safe operating procedures, evaluating operators and authorizing them to operate specific forklift types, and taking prompt corrective action when hazards are identified including halting operations if necessary. The competent person plays a critical role in forklift safety programs.

You must score at least 70% on the final exam to pass and receive your certificate of completion. The course includes knowledge-check quizzes that do not count toward your final grade but help prepare you for the exam. If you do not pass on your first attempt, you can retake the exam.

Better Training. Better Outcomes.

Fifteen years, 200,000+ professionals certified, and a completion rate roughly double the industry average.

OSHA citation printed on every certificate

Your employer and site safety officer can verify compliance at a glance, with no phone calls and no lookups.

No setup. No LMS. Training in minutes.

Pay once, get instant access. No account setup, no downloads, no IT involvement. Works in any browser.

Built for field workers, not classrooms

Grounded in real jobsite operations. Scenarios reflect the work your crew actually does.

Trusted by safety managers & contractors

Used by EHS managers, general contractors and federal site supervisors to keep crews certified on time.

200,000+
Professionals certified
87%
Completion rate (industry avg <45%)
10M+
Hours of training delivered
15
Years in business

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