OSHA issues new rule for confined spaces in construction

 

On May 1, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final rule  to protect construction workers in confined spaces. The effective date for this standard is targeted for early August 2015.

 

Manholes, crawl spaces, tanks, and other confined spaces are not intended for continuous occupancy. They are also difficult to exit in an emergency. Workers in confined spaces can face life-threatening hazards including toxic substances, electrocutions, explosions and asphyxiation.

The rule provides construction workers with protections similar to those that manufacturing and general industry workers have had for more than two decades, with some differences tailored to the construction industry.

 

These include requirements to ensure that multiple employers share vital safety information and continuously monitor hazards-a safety option made possible by technological advances after the manufacturing and general industry standards were created.

 

States with "state-plan" OSHA programs will have to adopt this standard or develop a similar rule.

Compliance assistance material and more information is available on OSHA's Confined Spaces in Construction Web page.