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Fall Protection

OSHA Office of Training & Education

1926 Subpart M – Fall Protection

This presentation is designed to assist trainers conducting OSHA 10-hour Construction Industry outreach training for workers. Since workers are the target audience, this presentation emphasizes hazard identification, avoidance, and control – not standards. No attempt has been made to treat the topic exhaustively. It is essential that trainers tailor their presentations to the needs and understanding of their audience.

This presentation is not a substitute for any of the provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 or for any standards issued by the U.S. Department of Labor. Mention of trade names, commercial products, or organizations does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Department of Labor.

Falls are the leading cause of deaths in the construction industry.

Most fatalities occur when employees fall from open-sided floors and through floor openings.

Falls from as little as 4 to 6 feet can cause serious lost-time accidents and sometimes death.

Open-sided floors and platforms 6 feet or more in height must be guarded.

Falls in Construction

OSHA Office of Training & Education

The issues of how to provide fall protection for employees at construction sites are difficult ones. There are so many different types of work and so many different kinds of fall hazards that it is not possible to organize fall protection into a neat set of rules that fit all situations. OSHA reflects this difficulty when it places its rules for fall protection in several different subparts in the Construction Standards, depending primarily on the nature of the work being undertaken. There are separate locations, for example, for fall protection during work on scaffolds, during work on certain cranes and derricks, during work in tunnels, during work on stairways and ladders, during steel erection, etc.

This presentation will discuss:

The working conditions that prompt use of fall protection

Options that are available to protect workers from falls

Fall Protection

OSHA Office of Training & Education

At the end of this topic, you will be able to:

List at least four methods of fall protection available for protecting workers

State the main criteria that prompts use of fall protection for construction workers

Fall Protection

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Personal Fall

Arrest System

(PFAS)

Guardrails

Safety Net

Fall Protection Options

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(1)

General rule: If an employee can fall six feet or more onto a lower level, fall protection must be provided.

What type of fall protection will I need?

In most cases, a guardrail system, a safety net system, or a personal fall arrest system must be used. In some cases fences, barricades, covers, equipment guards or a controlled access zone may be used.

Employees must be protected not just from falling off a surface, but from falling through holes and from having objects fall on them from above.

Fall protection systems and work practices

must be in place before you start work.

Lanyards and PFAS in use

Fall Protection Planning

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926 Subpart M App C

An employer may use a variety of fall protection systems to protect employees. These systems must meet OSHA requirements. The competent person must make frequent and regular inspections, as required, to determine if these systems meet OSHA requirements before employees rely on these systems. More detail may be found in 29 CFR 1926.502.

Employers engaged in leading edge work, precast concrete erection work, or residential construction work who can demonstrate that it is infeasible or it creates a greater hazard to use conventional fall protection equipment may develop a fall protection plan that provides other measures to be taken to reduce or eliminate fall hazards for workers. Fall protection plans must conform to OSHA provisions and be prepared by a qualified person. Although a fall protection is required, it does not have to written, nor does it have to be site specific. Fall protection plans must identify locations where conventional fall protection methods cannot be used and set up controlled access zones and any necessary safety monitoring systems.

See STD 3-0.1A

Personal Fall Arrest Systems

You must be trained how to properly use PFAS.
PFAS = anchorage, lifeline and body harness.

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.502(d)

What will my personal fall arrest system do to protect me?

A personal fall arrest system places the employee into a body harness that is fastened to a secure anchorage so that he/she cannot fall. Body belts are not acceptable as personal fall arrest systems. A few key requirements:

There should be no free fall more than 6 feet.
There should be prompt rescue after a fall.
PFAS’s must be inspected prior to each use.
PFAS’s must not be used until they have been inspected by a competent person.

Must be independent of any platform anchorage and capable of supporting at least 5,000 lbs. per worker

Safety Line Anchorages

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926. 502(d)(15)

Top rails between 39 and 45 inches tall
Toeboards at least 3 1/2 inches high

Top Rail

Mid- Rail

Toeboard

Guardrails

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.502(b) and 1926.502(j)

How do guardrail systems protect me from falling?

Guardrail systems provide a barrier to protect the employee from falling:

Top edge of the guardrail must be 39-45 inches above the walking/working level.
There must also be protection from falling between the top rail and the walking/working surface. Midrails, screens, mesh, or intermediate vertical members may be used for this protection. There are specific requirements for their installation.
The protective barriers must be strong enough to support a falling employee. Wood, chain and wire rope may be used for top rails and midrails.

Place as close as possible, but no more than 30 feet below where employees work

Safety Nets

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.502(c)

How do safety net systems protect me?

Safety net systems catch the employee if he/she does fall. The safety nets:

Must be strong enough to support a falling employee;
Must have sufficiently small mesh openings so the employee cannot fall through the net;
Must be close enough to the surface of the walking/working surface so that the fall into the safety net will not still injure the employee (never more than 30 feet below the walking/working level);
Must be close enough to the edge of the working surface (the outer edge of the net between 8-13 feet from the edge of the walking/working surface, depending on the distance to the walking/working surface) so that the falling employee will not slip past the net.

When Fall Protection is Needed

Walkways & ramps
Open sides & edges
Holes
Concrete forms & rebar
Excavations

Roofs
Wall openings
Bricklaying
Residential Construction

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Where should I expect fall protection to be provided?

When an employee is on a walking/working surface that has an unprotected edge.
When an employee is constructing a leading edge.
When an employee may fall through a hole in the walking/working surface.
When an employee is working on the face of formwork or reinforcing steel.
When employees are on ramps, runways and other walkways.
When employees are working at the edge of an excavation, well, pit, or shaft.
When employees are working above dangerous equipment (even employees working less than six feet over dangerous equipment must be protected).
When an employee is performing overhand bricklaying and related work.
When an employee is performing roofing work.
When an employee is engaging in precast concrete erection (with certain exceptions).
When an employee is engaged in residential construction (with certain exceptions).

Guard ramps, runways, and other walkways

Walkways and Ramps

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(6)

Ramps, runways, and other walkways must be protected by guardrail systems when employees can fall 6 feet or more.

The walking/working surface must be strong enough to support employees safely. If not, employees may not work on the surface. This knowledge will be gained during frequent and regular inspections made, as required, by competent persons designated by the employer.

In residential construction, you must be protected if you can fall more than 6 feet

Fall Protection -

Residential Construction

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(13)

This is correct for activities not covered by STD 3-0.1A

All other activities – refer to STD 3-0.1A, Interim Fall Protection Guidelines for Residential Construction

Unprotected edge

Unprotected Sides & Edges

Unprotected sides and edges must have guardrails or equivalent

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(1)

Sides & Edges - Improper Guarding

This 1/4" nylon rope alone is not a proper way to guard this open floor

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.502(b)

What’s wrong with this?

¼ inch rope is allowed, but it must meet the criteria of 1926.502(b)(3), etc.
no midrail
no toeboards

- sagging is not allowed

Holes more than 6 feet high must be protected
This opening could be made safe by using a

guardrail, or strong cover

Sky Lights and Other Openings

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(4)(i), 1926.501(b)(10), 1926.501(b)(11), and 1926.502(i)

Covers must be:

-- able to support at least twice the weight of employees, equipment, and materials that may be imposed on them at one time.

-- secured to prevent accidental displacement from wind, equipment, or workers’ activities.

-- color coded or bear the markings “HOLE” or “COVER.”

Holes - 1926.501(b)(4):

Personal fall arrest systems, covers, or guardrail systems shall be erected around holes (including skylights) that are more than 6 feet above lower levels.

NOTE – All floor holes must be protected against slips/trips – even if less than 6 feet

Cover completely and securely
If no cover, can guard with a guardrail

Floor Holes

Improperly

Covered

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(4)

Use PFAS when working on formwork or rebar
Cover or cap protruding rebar

Concrete Forms and Rebar

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference1926.452(g) and 1926.701(b)

Employees on a form scaffold can be exposed to falls of less than 10 feet.

1926.501, covers employees working on whalers.

Guard excavations more than 6 feet deep when they are not readily seen because of plant growth or other visual barriers

Excavations

In addition to needing guarding, this excavation is not properly shored

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(7)

Employees at the edge of an excavation 6 feet or more deep shall be protected from falling by guardrail systems, fences, barricades, or covers.

If walk-ways are used to permit workers to cross over excavations, guardrails are required on the walkway if the fall would be 6 feet or more to the lower level.

If you work on roofs and can fall

more than 6 feet, you must be protected

Roofs

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(10)

Reference 1926.501(b)(11) - steep roofs

Roofers - First refer to STD 3-0.1A

If workers are working on roofs with unprotected sides and edges 6 feet or more above lower levels, they shall be protected from falling by guardrail systems, safety net systems, personal fall arrest systems or a combination of a warning line system and guard-rail system, warning line system and safety net system, warning line system and personal fall arrest system, or warning line system and safety monitoring system.

If you work near wall openings 6 feet or more above lower levels you must be protected from falling

Wall opening

Wall Openings

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.501(b)(14)

Employees working on, at, above, or near wall openings (including those with chutes attached) where the outside bottom edge of the wall opening is 6 feet or more above lower levels and the inside bottom edge of the wall opening is less than 39 inches above the walking/working surface must be protected from falling by the use of

either a guardrail system, a safety net system, or a personal fall arrest system.

Good Work Practices

Perform work at ground level if possible

Example: building prefab roofs on the ground and lifting into place with a crane

Tether or restrain workers so they can't reach the edge
Designate and use safety monitors (This is less desirable of all the systems)
Use conventional fall protection

OSHA Office of Training & Education

The training is to teach you:

How to recognize hazards
How to minimize hazards

The training must cover:

Fall hazards
Fall protection systems
Use of fall protection devices

Training

Employers must provide fall protection training

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Reference 1926.503(a)(1)

How should I be trained?

Training must be provided to each employee who might be exposed to fall hazards. In construction, this will involve most employees. The training by a competent person must enable each employee to recognize the hazards of falling and train employees in the procedures to be followed to minimize these hazards.

The training must include:

The nature of fall hazards in the work area;
The correct procedures for erecting, maintaining, disassembling, and inspecting the fall protection systems to be used;
The use and operation of guardrail systems, personal fall arrest systems, safety net systems, warning line systems, safety monitoring systems, controlled access zones, and other protection;
The role of each employee in the safety monitoring system when this system is used;
The limitations on the use of mechanical equipment during the performance of roofing work on low-sloped roofs;
The correct procedures for the handling and storage of equipment and materials and the erection of overhead protection; and
The role of employees in fall protection plans.
The standards of subpart M

The employer must verify compliance with the training requirements by preparing a written certification record.

The employer must retrain any employee when the employer has reason to believe that the trained employee does not have the understanding and skill required.

Summary

If you can fall more than 6 feet, you must be protected
Use fall protection on:

walkways & ramps, open sides & edges, holes, concrete forms & rebar, excavations, roofs, wall openings, bricklaying, residential construction

Protective measures include guardrails, covers, safety nets, and Personal Fall Arrest Systems

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Duty to have fall protection.

OSHA requires employees to provide fall protections systems that must meet certain criteria:

Walking and working surfaces must have sufficient strength and structural integrity to support employees safely.
Employers must provide protection to employees working in areas with unprotected sides or edges 6 feet or more above a lower level.
Specific types of protection are required in work areas with leading edges, in hoist areas, in work areas with holes, ramps, runways, and other walkways, in areas where excavations are being conducted, where dangerous equipment is being used, during overhand bricklaying, in roofing, in precast concrete erection, in residential construction, and in work areas with wall openings.

Hard hats are required when workers may be exposed to falling objects.

Other requirements include either

use of toeboards, screens or guardrail systems; or
use of a canopy structure; or
barricading area to which objects could fall and prohibiting employees from entrance.

OSHA Office of Training & Education

Personal Fall

Arrest System

(PFAS)

Guardrails

Safety Net

You must be protected from falling by

one of these three devices.

Fall Protection Options