What do 'work-ready' and 'work-in-progress' mean in the context of EV safety?

• A. Work-ready means HV is isolated and verified safe; work-in-progress means tasks are ongoing with hazards present and controls in place.
• B. Work-ready means you haven't started anything; work-in-progress means completed.
• C. It only refers to battery charge state.
• D. It has to do with paperwork.

Answer: (A)

In EV safety, these terms describe how you manage energy and hazards during maintenance. Work-ready means the high-voltage system has been isolated and verified safe to work on. That usually involves disconnecting the HV battery or power source, applying lockout/tagout, ensuring there is no stored energy, and confirming with a proper measurement that the system is de-energized and cannot re-energize unexpectedly. With this state, workers can perform tasks with minimal risk of electric shock or short circuits.

Work-in-progress describes a situation where a task is still being carried out and hazards related to the high-voltage system may remain. Energy could still be present somewhere in the circuit, or parts of the system may not yet be fully isolated. In this mode, safety controls are actively used—barriers, PPE, safe work permits, monitoring, and defined procedures—so work can continue while maintaining a controlled safety environment. If anything about the task changes such that isolation or protections can no longer be guaranteed, the work area must return to a work-ready state.

In short, work-ready = fully isolated and verified safe to work; work-in-progress = ongoing work with hazards managed by active safety controls.