I Do Not Get It?
https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/osha/osha20241216
I am not a "Construction Guy." For 50 years I have had to worry about keeping employees safe at 4'! This is the number one citation written by OSHA! It is easy to see all over the place. In my travels in my car I even see plenty of examples of construction workers without fall protection all the time.
I barely know the difference between a claw hammer and a roofing hammer (I have always been into Ballpeen Hammers and Mallets).
If I was not worried about a $300K fine I guess I would not be concerned about my WC Mod Rates! Nor would I worry about the substantial penalty in WC paid out on a case where there is an OSHA citation based on the injury.
Can construction companies afford all this cost?
Comments (4)
The construction industry (especially residential and commercial construction) is notorious for not using proper fall protection. Some OSHA-approved state plans actually have specific enforcement guidance for residential construction sites due to their fall hazards (and the abatement methods needed). I can't tell you how many times I was up on top of my parents' roof as a teenager cleaning leaves out of the gutters and the eaves with zero fall protection whatsoever. My dad still tried to do it for many years (when he was physically able to) - no matter how many times I told him not to.
We do a lot of work in the construction industry, and actually just scheduled a Fall Protection Competent Person course this morning for a roofing contractor in Ohio. What I've seen, as far as why fall protection usage at construction sites, usually falls into 3 issues:
- They didn't feel there was an adequate place to anchor off to;
- The anchorage method they wanted to use could potentially damage the roof, so either they or the customer didn't want them to do that; OR
- They didn't know all of the anchorage options out there, especially mobile anchor points, such as Malta Dynamic's Mobile Grabber.
Those certainly aren't legitimate justifications for going without fall protection (and there are alternate options, such as creating a documented fall protection plan in accordance with 1926.502(k)), but those are some common "excuses" I hear when we go out to construction sites or conduct training for construction companies. Hopefully, we'll see a shift in the years to come!
300k, wonder what that equates to as far as profit per day for that company