OSHA Issues Rule Updating Head Protection Standard

Posted on June 21, 2012 by Ilyse Schuman

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a direct final rule and request for comments (pdf) on the agency’s update of its Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) standards related to head protection. Specifically, OSHA is issuing the direct final rule to revise the PPE head protection requirements of its general industry, shipyard employment, longshoring, and marine terminals standards to conform those standards to the requirements recognized in the 2009 edition of the American National Standard for Industrial Head Protection. The rule also updates the PPE head protection requirements for the construction industry “to bring the construction standard up to date and to ensure consistency across OSHA standards.” The agency is simultaneously issuing a substantively identical proposed rule. (pdf) In the event the agency does not receive any significant adverse comments on this proposal or the direct final rule, it will publish a Federal Register notice confirming the effective date of the direct final rule and withdrawing this companion proposed rule.

As discussed in the direct final rule, the general industry and maritime rules “require that the specified head protection comply with national consensus standards incorporated by reference into the OSHA standards unless the employer demonstrates that non-specified head-protection equipment is at least as effective in protecting workers as equipment that complies with the incorporated national consensus standard.” In 2009, OSHA issued a final rule – Updating OSHA Standards Based on National Consensus Standards; Personal Protective Equipment – that did not include any reference to the 2009 edition of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard for industrial head protection (ANSI Z89.1), as it was not yet available. The 2009 rule also did not address PPE in the construction industry.

The final rule officially recognizes the most recent version of the standard, but notes that the revisions made by the rule will permit the use of helmets that comply with the three most recent editions of the consensus standard. The rule also removes outdated head protection references in the construction industry standard, and replaces them with those referenced in the general industry and maritime industry standards. Because this sector was not included in the 2009 rulemaking, the OSHA PPE standard for head protection still requires compliance with the ANSI standards issued in 1969 and 1971. Therefore, the direct final rule will permit construction industry compliance with the ANSI head protection standards issued in 1997, 2003, or the most recent version issued in 2009. According to OSHA:

By making the requirements of OSHA’s head protection standards consistent with the Agency’s other standards and with current industry practices, the direct final rule will eliminate confusion and clarify employer obligations, while providing up-to-date protection for workers exposed to falling objects.

The rule includes a side-by-side comparison of the 2003 and 2009 versions of the ANSI standard for industrial head protection referenced in the General Industry and Maritime Industry Standards, as well as a comparison showing the differences among the 1969, 1971, and 2009 head protection requirements for the construction industry.

Comments on this direct proposed rule must be received within 30 days of the rule’s publication in the Federal Register, which is scheduled for June 22, 2012, and must contain the Docket No. OSHA-2011-0184 or Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) No. 1218-AC65. Comments may be submitted electronically through the federal eRulemaking portal, or via fax if 10 pages or fewer to: (202) 693-1648. Alternately, comments may be sent by mail or hand-delivered to: OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2011-0184 or RIN No. 1218-AC65, Technical Data Center, Room N-2625, OSHA, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20210.

Photo credit: Kuzma
Tags: , , ,
  • Print
  • Trackbacks
  • Share Link

OSHA Issues Updated Enforcement Guidance on Personal Protective Equipment

Posted on February 16, 2011 by Ilyse Schuman

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued a directive – Enforcement Guidance for Personal Protective Equipment in General Industry (pdf) – that provides enforcement personnel with instructions for determining whether employers have complied with the agency’s personal protective equipment (PPE) standards. This directive, effective as of February 10, 2011, takes into consideration recently revised PPE rules, and therefore supersedes the PPE Inspection Guidelines issued in June 1995. On November 15, 2007, the agency revised its standards on PPE regarding employer payment for required PPE. Generally, the rule requires employers to pay for the PPE used to comply with OSHA standards, with specific exceptions. On September 9, 2009, OSHA revised its standards regarding eye, face, head and foot protection. As discussed in the document’s executive summary, the new directive differs significantly from the former version in that it:

  • Clarifies what type of PPE employers must provide at no cost, when employers must pay for PPE or for replacement PPE, and when employers are not required to pay for PPE.
  • Clarifies the PPE payment requirements for PPE worn off the jobsite, for PPE that must remain at the jobsite, and for employee-owned PPE.
  • Sets forth enforcement policies that reflect court and review commission decisions concerning PPE.
  • Provides guidance that allows employers to use PPE constructed in accordance with the most recent national consensus standards and updates PPE enforcement policies based on court and review commission decisions.

Among other information, the directive sets forth a series of questions and answers regarding PPE payment, as well as includes a chart of all of OSHA’s standards that require PPE. In addition, the document’s Appendix A contains a linkable list of the agency’s interpretation letters – some more than 30 years old – that address various PPE issues.

Photo credit: Matt Collingwood
Tags: , , ,
  • Print
  • Trackbacks
  • Share Link

OSHA Seeks Comments on Proposed Collection Methods Under Personal Protective Equipment Standard

Posted on November 23, 2009 by Jay Sumner

Workers putting on personal protective equipmentThe Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is seeking comment on its proposal to extend the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) approval of the information collection requirements set forth in the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Standard for general industry. OSHA’s information collection requirements under the general requirements for PPE include a hazard assessment of potential workplace hazards necessitating PPE, and verification that the assessment has been conducted. In addition, this standard requires that employers provide training and certification for each worker who is required to wear PPE. OSHA seeks comments on, among other things, whether these information collection requirements are necessary for the proper performance of the Agency’s functions, including whether the information is useful; whether OSHA’s estimate of the burden of the information collection requirements are accurate; the quality, utility, and clarity of the information collected; and ways to minimize the burden on employers who must comply with there requirements.

Comments must be submitted by January 22, 2010 and contain the identification number: OSHA-2009-0028. Comments sent via regular mail, hand delivery, express mail, messenger, or courier service must be provided in triplicate to the OSHA Docket Office, Docket No. OSHA-2009-0028, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Room N-2625, 200 Constitution Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20210. In the alternative, comments can be made electronically to the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov, or via fax if no longer than 10 pages to: (202) 693-1648.

Tags: , , ,
  • Print
  • Trackbacks
  • Share Link