OSHA Seeks to Protect Construction Workers in Confined Spaces

On May 4, OSHA issued a final rule covering workers who enter confined spaces in construction.

In general, the new rule requires employers to:

• Evaluate the jobsite to identify confined spaces
• Develop a written program and permitting system for permit-required confined spaces
• Control physical hazards and conduct monitoring for atmospheric hazards in confined spaces that are permit required
• Provide training for confined space entrants, attendants, supervisors and emergency duties.

Confined spaces are work areas that are not designed for continuous occupancy and may be difficult to exit in the event of an emergency. In home building, some of these may include manholes, sewer systems, crawlspaces and attics

In addition, home builders who hire trade contractors (i.e., subcontractors) to do work in a confined space may also have responsibilities under the new standard.

Builders, or controlling contractors as OSHA labels them, must discuss permit required confined spaces on the site and their hazards with employers who must enter permit required spaces, as well as each other before and after entering the space.

The new rule takes effect August 3, 2015. For more information and a copy of the rule, visit OSHA’s confined space website: https://www.osha.gov/confinedspaces/index.html.

Note: South Carolina is a delegated state for workplace health and safety.  That means that while OSHA may implement a new rule in states where it directly regulates workplace safety, states like South Carolina may lag slightly behind in implementing new Federal rules.

OSHA & NIOSH Issue Silica Hazard Alert for Stone Countertop Workers

On Wednesday, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) jointly issued a hazard alert about protecting workers from crystalline silica exposure in the manufacture, finish and installation of natural and engineered stone countertops.

The two agencies investigated U.S. worker exposure to respirable crystalline silica in the stone countertop industry following reports from other countries of stone countertop workers developing silicosis – an incurable, progressively disabling and sometimes fatal lung disease.

While the stone industry in the U.S. has worked to implement dust controls to protect workers against the dangers of silica exposure, studies and OSHA inspections indicate that exposure levels may not be adequately controlled in some stone countertop fabrication worksites in the U.S.


The alert addresses the health effects related to breathing in silica dust, recommends ways to protect workers, and describes how OSHA and NIOSH can help employers reduce silica dust exposures.

This includes monitoring the air to determine silica exposure levels; using engineering controls and safe work practices to control dust exposure; making respiratory protection available when needed; and providing training and information about the hazards of silica.

Crystalline silica is found in granite, sandstone, quartzite, various other rocks and sand. Workers who inhale silica particles are at risk for silicosis. Symptoms of silicosis can include shortness of breath, cough and fatigue, and may or may not be obviously attributable to silica. Workers exposed to airborne crystalline silica also are at increased risk for lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and kidney disease.

For more information on OSHA’s silica rulemaking and your Home Builders Association’s involvement, visit nahb.org/silica. For a quick reference guide on silica safety, check out your HBA's Silica Safety Cards, available for download in English and Spanish.

NAHB: OSHA abandons controversial inspector access rule

In a victory for HBA members, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) this week abandoned its plan to reshape the rules under which compliance officers can enter work sites that take advantage of the federally funded Onsite Consultation Program.

NAHB and other industry groups urged OSHA to scrap the rule when it was first proposed three years ago, saying the changes that OSHA wanted to make would effectively remove incentives to participate in the voluntary safety program that offers free and confidential safety advice to small and medium-sized businesses in all states across the country. Since then, several state consultation programs have lodged their own complaints about the proposed rule, fearing it would hurt small businesses who were interested in participating in the consultation program and decrease the number of employers developing comprehensive safety and health management programs. However, union groups had strongly supported the measure as a means of addressing any hazards that might emerge on these sites, and OSHA appeared close to issuing a final rule as early as September of 2011.

Last week OSHA reversed course with its latest decision, announcing that it is dropping the proposal altogether and citing comments received from various stakeholders. The bottom line for HBA members is that your national association has helped preserve the use of OSHA's free on-site consultation program without the threat of additional OSHA enforcement. 

SCHBSIF Receives NAHB SAFE Award

The South Carolina Home Builders Self Insurers Fund was named the National Association of Home Builders Associate Member Safety Program of the Year. The award will be presented on February 7 at the International Builders Show in Orlando, Florida. 

Your Home Builders Association of Greenville endorses the SIF and recommends it to our members as a source for your Worker's Compensation Insurance needs.

The Safety Award For Excellence (SAFE) recognizes NAHB member companies, workers, and other individuals for the excellent safety programs that make them leaders in the residential construction industry. The NAHB annually recognizes those who have worked to achieve exemplary safety and health in residential construction. There were more than 40 applicants for SAFE awards in 2011.

The SCHBSIF assists its members in providing safe work places by conducting safety training that is specific to the home building industry. It also provides on-site safety surveys for its more than eight hundred members. These surveys assist home builders and subcontractors in identifying hazards and provide them with recommendations for corrective actions that reduce the potential for injuries in the workplace.

NAHB: Majority of OSHA's Most Frequently Cited Standards in 2011 Apply to Home Building

SAFETY:

Each year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration compiles an annual list of the top 10 most frequently cited standards across all industries. The majority of standards that OSHA has identified as the most frequently cited are directly applicable to the construction and residential home building industries.

Employers who were cited for violations in 2011 may have noticed that the penalties were higher than in the past. The average serious violation penalty for 2011 was $2,132 — more than double the average of $1,053 for 2010.

OSHA last year also issued 215 citations totaling at least $100,000 — up from the 164 in 2010.

OSHA’s top 10 most frequently cited standards across all industries in FY 2011 were:

1. Scaffolding, general requirements (29 CFR 1926.451) 
2. Fall protection (29 CFR 1926.501) 
3. Hazard communication standard (29 CFR 1910.1200) 
4. Respiratory protection (29 CFR 1910.134) 
5. Control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout) (29 CFR 1910.147) 
6. Electrical, wiring methods, components and equipment (29 CFR 1910.305) 
7. Powered industrial trucks (29 CFR 1910.178) 
8. Ladders (29 CFR 1926.1053) 
9. Electrical systems design, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.303) 
10. Machines, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.212) 

Residential builders can take a few easy steps to reduce or eliminate the chance of being cited by OSHA.

During a Sept. 16, 2010 webinar on preparing for OSHA inspections, Brad Hammock of Jackson Lewis LLP reminded builders that they can take the following steps before a compliance safety and health officer (CSHO) ever sets foot on the job site.

• Review their safety program 
• Understand any national and local emphasis programs 
• Develop procedures for an OSHA visit and train their employees in those procedures 
• Have records (300 Logs, training records, etc.) readily available and up-to-date 
• Make sure their workers are properly trained on the safety requirements of the job site 

For more information on complying with OSHA regulations, visit www.nahb.org/SAFETY; or email Marcus Odorizzi at NAHB, or call him at 800-368-5242 x8590.

NAHB: Addison Homes Wins National Safety Award

The Greenville-based homebuilder won a first-place Safety Award for Excellence from the National Association of Home Builders and Builders Mutual Insurance Company. Presented in the Single Family Builder Safety Program of the Year category, this top honor recognizes Addison Homes for its comprehensive efforts designed to ensure an accident-free work environment for employees, trade partners and vendors.

Addison Homes advances safety in the homebuilding industry in a number of ways. The company has established clearly-defined procedures for its office as well as worksites and provides ongoing safety training for all employees. An on-site supervisor monitors compliance of both company and OSHA guidelines at every jobsite. A commitment to research keeps Addison Homes current on the latest developments related to construction safety.

“We strive, every day and on every job, to maintain a safe, healthy work environment,” says Todd Usher, president of Addison Homes. “Our company invests significant resources to provide for the well-being of our employees, partners and clients.”

Usher notes there’s never been an incidence of “serious” physical injury on an Addison worksite. “This record is a testament to the success of our company’s safety program,” he says.

The NAHB/Builders Mutual Insurance Company SAFE Awards are presented annually to builders and trade contractors whose high-quality safety programs make them leaders in the residential construction industry.

New Fall Protection Regulations will be Phased in by OSHA Over the Next 90 Days

Be prepared for increased OSHA enforcement action

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced last month that it will phase in enforcement of its fall protection regulations for residential construction sites.

In a June 8 letter to NAHB, Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, announced a three month phase-in period to allow residential construction companies additional time to come into compliance with the Agency’s new directive Compliance Guidance for Residential Construction (STD 03-11-002).

This decision is in response to a meeting between NAHB and OSHA’s leadership on May 26, during which NAHB First Vice Chairman Barry Rutenberg and Dean Mon, Chairman of NAHB’s Construction Safety and Health Committee, argued that builders need additional time to fully understand the steps that must be taken and to properly plan for the fall protection change. NAHB also stressed there is a continued need for more fall protection training and compliance assistance for residential construction employers.

The effective date of the new regulation is June 16 and the 90-day phase-in period will run through September 15.

OSHA's field staff have now been instructed that for the first three months in which the new directive is in effect, the agency will not issue fall protection citations to home builders who are using the protective measures in the old residential construction fall protection directive (STD 03-00-001). Instead, where necessary, OSHA will issue a hazard alert letter informing the builder of the feasible methods that can be used to comply with OSHA’s fall protection standard or the need for a written fall protection plan to be implemented. If the builder’s practices do not meet the minimum requirements set in the old directive — or if a company fails to implement the fall protection measures outlined in a hazard alert letter and during a subsequent inspection OSHA should find violations involving the same hazards — the agency will at that time issue a citation.

In addition, OSHA has announced that it is increasing the dollar amounts of fines associated with citations. Fines are expect to increase from an average of $1,000 to $4,000. The maximum penalty is $70,000. Click here to read a detailed assessment of OSHA's new fines in NAHB's EH&S Monthly newsletter.

Builders and trade contractors should pay particular attention to the following hazards, which are the top 10 most frequently-cited OSHA standards for construction in 2010 (with the reference to the specific OSHA standard in parentheses):

1. Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451)
2. Fall Protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.501)
3. Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053)
4. Fall Protection, training requirements (29 CFR 1926.503)
5. Hazard Communication Standard (29 CFR 1910.1200)
6. General Safety & Health Provisions (29 CFR 1926.20)
7. Head Protection (29 CFR 1926.100)
8. Aerial Lifts (29 CFR 1926.453)
9. Eye & Face Protection (29 CFR 1926.102)
10. Excavation, specific excavation requirements (29 CFR 1926.651)

There are a few simple things that builders and trade contractors should do to be prepared for OSHA inspections. These include:

• Conducting an assessment to identify and correct safety hazards on the job site.
• Conducting appropriate safety training for employees — such as fall protection and ladder safety training.
• Updating records and making sure they are readily available.
• Understanding the OSHA inspection process.

NAHB has multiple resources that are designed to assist member in achieving compliance with OSHA's rules, including handbooks and videos. Order these materials at BuilderBooks.com by clicking here. Additional compliance safety information is available at NAHB.org by clicking here.

Additional resources are available from OSHA:

• Compliance Guidance for Residential Construction
• Safety and Health Topics
• On-Site Consultation Program

Additional resources have been added to the HBA of Greenville's website. Click here to access these construction site resources at HBAofGreenville.com.

Additional resources also are available on NAHB's website. Click here to access these construction site resources at NAHB.org.