Proper Use of Mats and Rugs Toolbox Talk

Mats and rugs can help control mud, water, dust, and debris, but they can also create slip and trip hazards when they are loose, curled, torn, wet, bunched up, or placed in the wrong spot. A mat that shifts under a worker’s foot can cause a fall just as quickly as a slick floor.

This talk focuses on the proper use of mats and rugs on the jobsite. The goal is to make sure mats improve traction and housekeeping without creating new hazards in walkways, entrances, stairs, ramps, or work areas.

Why This Matters

• Loose or curled mats can catch boots, carts, dollies, ladders, and material loads.
• Wet or dirty mats can become slippery instead of improving traction.
• Mats placed in high-traffic areas can shift, bunch, or hide floor damage underneath.
• Poor mat placement can create trip hazards at doorways, stair landings, ramps, and transitions.
• Inspecting mats during the shift helps prevent falls as conditions change.

Common Hazards

• Using mats with curled edges, torn corners, holes, loose backing, or raised seams.
• Placing mats on uneven floors, loose plywood, gravel, mud, floor plates, or unstable surfaces.
• Allowing mats to slide because the backing is worn, wet, dusty, or not suited for the floor.
• Stacking mats or overlapping rugs to cover a hazard instead of fixing or barricading it.
• Putting mats where carts, pallet jacks, lifts, ladders, or loaded workers must turn sharply.
• Leaving soaked mats in place at entrances, wash stations, temporary shelters, or wet work areas.
• Using mats that are too thick at thresholds, ramps, elevator openings, or material routes.
• Covering a floor opening, damaged surface, cord, hose, or uneven transition with a mat where workers cannot see the hazard.

Safety Checklist

Before Work Begins

• Inspect mats and rugs for curled edges, tears, worn backing, holes, contamination, and loose seams.
• Place mats only on clean, flat, stable surfaces where they can lie fully flat.
• Use mats with slip-resistant backing or secure them so they do not move under foot traffic.
• Choose the right mat for the condition, such as entrance mats for moisture, anti-fatigue mats for standing work, or traction mats for wet areas.
• Keep mats clear of stairs, ladder bases, ramps, floor openings, emergency exits, and heavy equipment paths unless approved for that use.
• Make sure mats do not block door swing, create a raised edge, or interfere with carts and material handling.
• Remove any mat that hides a hazard instead of controlling it.

During Work

• Check mats throughout the shift, especially after rain, deliveries, cleanup, or heavy foot traffic.
• Flatten, secure, clean, dry, or replace mats that move, curl, bunch, or become slippery.
• Remove mud, water, dust, oil, and debris from mats before they spread to walking surfaces.
• Do not drag carts, dollies, ladders, or material loads over loose mats.
• Keep mat edges visible and avoid covering them with tools, cords, hoses, boxes, or scrap.
• Report damaged mats and replace them before workers continue using the area.
• Use barricades or alternate routes if a mat must be removed and the surface underneath is still unsafe.

Crew Talking Points

• Where are mats or rugs being used in our work area today?
• Are any mats curled, torn, wet, loose, too thick, or placed in a high-traffic route?
• Could any mat interfere with carts, ladders, doors, ramps, stairs, or material handling?
• Are we using mats to control a hazard or accidentally hiding one?
• Who will check mats during the shift as conditions change?
• Does anyone have questions, concerns, or a safer way to control slippery walking surfaces?

Stop Work If

• A mat slides, bunches, curls, or creates a raised edge in a walking path.
• A rug or mat is hiding a floor opening, damaged surface, cord, hose, or uneven transition.
• The mat is soaked, oily, muddy, torn, or too slippery to walk on safely.
• The mat interferes with doors, ladders, carts, ramps, stairs, exits, or material routes.
• The surface under the mat is unstable, uneven, wet, damaged, or not strong enough.
• The hazard cannot be corrected, secured, removed, or barricaded before workers use the area.

Final Reminder

Mats should make the walking surface safer, not hide hazards or create new ones. Keep them flat, clean, dry, secure, and out of the wrong places.