This past August 2015 the Occupational Safety & Health Administration
has enacted a new rule regarding confined space hazards that finally
incorporated the construction industry into the standards that the general
industry had been following for so long. But, some aluminium plants under
construction before August 2015 may believe that they are exempt or “grandfathered”
or from this new standard. They are incorrect. OSHA nor any other safety
government organization that the Aluminium Plant Safety Blog is aware of exempt
companies from recently enacted safety laws. Almost all safety organizations
will have a period of time (usually a few months) where fines will not be
accessed for violation(s) of the new law. The APSB sent the OSHA a question
about the recent confined space law (shown above). Here’s their answer
Thank you
for your question to OSHA. You can find
the information you requested in the OSHA resource(s) listed below:
No,
a construction site cannot be grandfathered. The new
standard went into effect on August 3, 2015. A temporary enforcement policy was
in effect for all employers covered by the standard through October 2,
2015. OSHA further extended this
temporary enforcement policy through January 8, 2016, only for employers
engaged in residential construction work, under the terms outlined below:
Before
January 8, 2016, OSHA will not issue citations under the Confined Spaces in
Construction standard to an employer engaged in residential construction work
if the employer is making good faith efforts to comply with the standard, as
long as the employer is in compliance with either the training requirements of
the standard, found at 29 CFR 1926.1207,
or
the former training requirements found at 29 CFR 1926.21(b)(6)(i), which
provided:
All
employees required to enter into confined or enclosed spaces shall be
instructed as to the nature of the hazards involved, the necessary precautions
to be taken, and in the use of protective and emergency equipment required. The
employer shall comply with any specific regulations that apply to work in
dangerous or potentially dangerous areas.
Employers
who fail to train their employees consistent with either 29 CFR 1926.1207 or CFR 1926.21(b)(6)(i) would
properly be cited for violation of-1926.1207. Factors OSHA will consider when
evaluating whether an employer is engaged in good faith efforts to comply with
the new standard include:
If
the employer has not trained its employees as required under the new standard,
whether the employer has scheduled such training,
If
the employer does not have the equipment required for compliance with the new
standard, including personal protective equipment, whether the employer has
ordered or otherwise arranged to obtain such equipment required for compliance
and is taking alternative measures to protect employees from confined space
hazards,
and
Whether
the employer has engaged in any additional efforts to educate workers about
confined space hazards and protect workers from those hazards.
The
following links will provide some useful information to help you with
compliance:
The Aluminium Times magazine has an article about the new confined
space rules.
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