OSHA finalizes update to walking-working surfaces rule

November 30th, 2016 by Dakota Software Staff Industry News

Like many government agencies, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration regularly updates its regulations in an effort to make them as effective and relevant as possible. OSHA recently proposed updates to a number of its standards, and as of mid-November, finalized changes to a rule that has a major effect on businesses throughout the country. The Walking-Working Surfaces standard is one of the broadest currently on the books, applying to a wide range of employees and employers. According to EHS Today, the health and safety rules have an impact on approximately 112 million workers and about 7 million businesses in total.

What changes are in the new rule?
Safety & Health magazine said more choice for businesses is one of the largest components of the update. The increased flexibility is intended to reduce the burden placed on businesses by the regulations while encouraging a higher level of safety. Employers can now select their approach to fall protection from a number of approved options, including specific personal protection systems, choosing the one that makes the most sense for their facilities' layout and the safety of their employees. The change to the rule for general industry brings it in line with the nearly identical standard for the construction industry, which has been in place since 1994.

Other, more specific changes include allowing organizations to use rope descent systems as much as 300 feet above a lower level in a facility and prohibiting the use of body belts in personal fall protection systems. Employee training related to fall protection and personal protective systems is another mandate, although there's a six-month delay on the enforcement of that provision. One component of the rule, the requirement that all fixed ladders reaching higher than 24 feet have cage and well fall protection replaced with ladder safety or personal fall arrest systems, won't come into effect until 2036. Besides that one outlier, the rest of the delayed requirements have a maximum waiting period of two years.

"The final rule will increase workplace protection from those hazards, especially fall hazards, which are a leading cause of worker deaths and injuries," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health, according to EHS Today. "OSHA believes advances in technology and greater flexibility will reduce worker deaths and injuries from falls."