# Job Hazard Analysis: Pulling wire URL: https://hardhatbinder.com/en/jha/electrical/wire-pulling Last updated: 2026-10-23 Pulling copper conductors (typically #12 AWG to 500 kcmil) through installed EMT or PVC conduit in a building under construction or renovation. Covers fishing with steel or fiberglass fish tape, setting up wire reels and reel stands, lubricating and hand-pulling or using a portable power cable puller (tugger), working from 6-ft to 10-ft fiberglass stepladders, and cleanup. Pulls may end in panels, junction boxes, or switchgear that could have nearby energized circuits. > A general example for this task. Your JHA should reflect your crew, equipment and site — review it with a competent person before work starts. ## Steps, hazards and controls ### 1. Plan the pull and check both ends for energized equipment. - **Contact with energized bus or conductors in the panel or box where the pull ends.** (High): De-energize the panel or circuit and apply your own lock and tag before opening covers or pulling into it.; Test for absence of voltage with a meter checked on a known live source before and after testing.; If any part stays energized, install insulating barriers over live parts and keep the pull out of that section; the foreman decides if the pull can proceed.; Wear voltage-rated gloves and arc-rated clothing when working near any energized part. - **Workers at each end can't see or hear each other during the pull.** (Medium): Assign one person to call the pull and agree on radio or phone signals for start, slow, and STOP before starting.; Anyone can call STOP at any time, and the puller stops immediately. ### 2. Set up wire reels, reel stand, and cart at the feed end. - **Heavy wire reels rolling, tipping, or falling while moving or loading them onto the stand.** (Medium): Move reels with a reel cart, pallet jack, or forklift instead of rolling or lifting by hand.; Chock reels on the floor and set the reel stand on flat, solid ground with the axle bar locked.; Use two people for any reel over 50 lb you must lift by hand, and wear steel-toe boots. - **Pinch points between the reel flange, axle, and stand.** (Low): Keep hands off the flanges while the reel turns; slow it with a brake or a board, not your hand.; Wear work gloves when handling reels and conductors. ### 3. Set ladders and fish the conduit with fish tape or vacuum a pull string. - **Falls from a stepladder while reaching into ceiling boxes or pull points.** (High): Use a scissor lift or rolling platform for long runs of overhead work when available.; Use a fiberglass stepladder fully opened and locked, on level floor; never stand on the top cap or the step below it.; Keep your belt buckle between the rails, and move the ladder instead of overreaching.; Don't pull wire while standing on a ladder; feed or guide only. - **Steel fish tape contacting energized parts or snapping back and cutting hands or eyes.** (High): Use non-conductive fiberglass fish tape whenever the run enters a box or panel that may be live.; Keep the fish tape in its case and feed it slowly; keep your face away from the conduit end.; Wear safety glasses and cut-resistant gloves while fishing. ### 4. Attach conductors to the pull rope and apply wire-pulling lubricant. - **Cuts from utility knives and cable strippers while making up the pulling head.** (Medium): Use cable strippers or a cable-cutting tool instead of an open utility knife when possible.; Cut away from your body and use a self-retracting blade knife.; Wear cut-resistant gloves. - **Slips on spilled pulling lubricant and skin or eye irritation from the lubricant.** (Low): Read the SDS and use the lubricant in a squeeze bottle or pump, not poured from the bucket.; Wipe up spills right away and put cardboard under the feed point.; Wear safety glasses and nitrile or work gloves. ### 5. Pull the wire by hand or with a power cable puller (tugger). - **Pull rope breaking or the pulling head letting go and whipping back under tension.** (High): Use only pull rope rated above the puller's maximum force, and inspect it for cuts, fraying, and glazing before each pull.; Anchor the tugger exactly as the manufacturer says, and never anchor to conduit, pipe, or ceiling grid.; Stay out of the line of the rope and away from the pulling sheave while under tension. - **Hands, gloves, or clothing caught in the tugger capstan or rope.** (High): Use a tugger with a working foot switch or dead-man control, and test it before the pull.; Keep hands at least 12 in. from the capstan; never wrap the rope around your hand or body.; No loose sleeves, jewelry, or hoodie strings near the puller. - **Back and shoulder strain from hand pulling.** (Medium): Use the tugger for long runs, large conductors, or multiple bends instead of hand pulling.; Use enough lubricant and a feeder at the reel end to reduce pulling force.; Pull with your legs, feet staggered, and rotate pullers on long jobs. - **Electric shock from the tugger's cord or extension cord.** (Medium): Plug the tugger into a GFCI-protected outlet or cord.; Inspect cords for damage before use and keep them out of the pulling path and wet areas. ### 6. Cut, coil, and secure conductor ends; clean up the work area. - **Trips over wire scraps, rope, empty reels, and cords.** (Medium): Coil rope and cords and put scraps in the copper scrap bin as you go.; Stack empty reels out of walkways and chock them so they can't roll. - **Someone re-energizing the circuit before work is complete.** (High): Leave locks and tags on until all conductors are terminated or capped and everyone is clear.; Only the person who placed a lock removes it.; Tape and label loose conductor ends in boxes and panels. ## Required PPE - Safety glasses — ANSI Z87.1, worn at all times, especially when fishing and pulling. - Hard hat — Class E (electrical) hard hat when working under overhead work or near electrical equipment. - Work gloves — Cut-resistant gloves for handling wire, fish tape, and knives; snug fit near the tugger. - Steel-toe or composite-toe boots — Electrical hazard (EH) rated, worn at all times for reel handling. - Voltage-rated gloves and arc-rated clothing — Only when working near parts that cannot be de-energized; rating must match the equipment. ## Training - Lockout/tagout procedures and how to test for absence of voltage. - Hands-on training in safe setup and use of the specific cable puller (tugger) and its manufacturer's instructions. - Ladder safety training by a competent person. - Hazard communication training on the pulling lubricant and how to read its SDS. - Only qualified electricians may work near exposed energized parts. ## Emergency If someone is shocked: do not touch them. Shut off power at the disconnect or move them away with a dry non-conductive object. Call 911 and give the site address. Start CPR if they are not breathing and use the AED if available. For a rope whip or fall injury, stop the puller, keep the person still, and call 911. ## Official sources - [29 CFR 1926.21](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.21) — Safety training and education - [29 CFR 1926.25](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.25) — Housekeeping - [29 CFR 1926.250](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.250) — Materials storage - [29 CFR 1926.300](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.300) — Hand and power tools — general requirements - [29 CFR 1926.416](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.416) — Electrical — general requirements - [29 CFR 1926.417](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.417) — Lockout and tagging of circuits - [29 CFR 1926.1053](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.1053) — Ladders - [29 CFR 1926.102](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-29/section-1926.102) — Eye and face protection --- Source: HardHat Binder, operated by Leadspire LLC. Templates to be reviewed by a competent person before use; not legal advice; not affiliated with OSHA.