The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has upped the requirements for keeping workers safe who work construction jobs in confined spaces.
The new rule issued by the agency on May 1 replaces OSHA’s one training requirement for confined space work with a comprehensive standard that includes a permit program designed to protect employees from exposure to many hazards associated with work in confined spaces, including atmospheric and physical hazards.
The final rule is similar in content and organization to the general industry confined spaces standard, but also incorporates several provisions from the proposed rule to address construction-specific hazards, accounts for advancements in technology, and improves enforceability of the requirements.
The rule affects establishments in several sectors of the construction industry, including work involving buildings, highways, bridges, tunnels, utility lines, and other types of projects. Also potentially affected are general contractors, as well as specialty-trade construction contractors and employers engaged in some types of residential construction work.
OSHA estimates the rule will prevent 780 serious injuries every year to workers who toil in confined spaces.
Here’s the agency’s news release on the final rule, including a link to the rule.
This blog post got positive review by The Majority Opinion Legal Blog, What I’ve Been Reading This Week June 12, 2015 edition.
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