OSHA requires employers to protect employees from falling through holes, including skylights. Holes less than 4 feet above a lower level need to be protected by a cover or guardrail system.
OSHA expands on the definition of an opening in the preamble to the Walking-Working Surface rule by adding that the inside edge of the gap must be at least 39 inches from the walking-working surface and the outer edge of the gap must be at least 4 feet or more from the lower level (i.e., a chute, window-walls, and temporary wall openings).
Scope
The Walking-Working Surfaces rule applies to all general industry employers and all the walking-working surfaces in their workplaces.
The rule generally, does not apply to agriculture, construction, maritime, mining, or transportation employers. However, the rule may apply to construction and transportation employers that have offices, maintenance shops, warehouses, or supply rooms.
Key definitions
- Fall hazard: Any condition on a walking-working surface that exposes an employee to a risk of harm from a fall on the same level or to a lower level.
- Fall protection: Any equipment, device, or system that prevents an employee from falling from an elevation or mitigates the effect of such a fall.
- Guardrail system: A barrier erected along an unprotected or exposed side, edge, or other area of a walking-working surface to prevent employees from falling to a lower level.
- Hole: A gap or open space in a floor, roof, horizontal walking-working surface that is at least 2 inches in its least dimension.
- Lower level: A surface or area to which an employee could fall. Such surfaces or areas include, but are not limited to, ground levels, floors, roofs, ramps, runways, excavations, pits, tanks, materials, water, equipment, and similar surfaces and structures, or portions thereof.
- Opening: A gap or open space in a wall, partition, vertical walking-working surface, or similar surface that is at least 30 inches (76 cm) high and at least 18 inches (46 cm) wide, through which an employee can fall to a lower level.
- Personal fall arrest system: A system used to arrest an employee in a fall from a walking-working surface. It consists of a body harness, anchorage, and connector. The means of connection may include a lanyard, deceleration device, lifeline, or a suitable combination of these.
- Platform: A walking-working surface that is elevated above the surrounding area.
- Travel restraint system: A combination of an anchorage, anchorage connector, lanyard (or other means of connection), and body support that an employer uses to eliminate the possibility of an employee going over the edge of a walking-working surface.
- Unprotected sides and edges: Any side or edge of a walking-working surface (except at entrances and other points of access) where there is no wall, guardrail system, or stair rail system to protect an employee from falling to a lower level.
- Walking-working surface: Any horizontal or vertical surface on or through which an employee walks, works, or gains access to a work area or workplace location.
Summary of requirements
Employers must:
- Evaluate the work environment and operations for hole and opening fall hazards and falling object hazards.
- Protect holes less than 4 feet above a lower level with a cover or guardrail system.
- Protect holes 4 feet or more above a lower level with fall protection including:
- Covers,
- Guardrails systems,
- Travel restraint systems, or
- Personal fall arrest systems.
- Protect stairway floor holes, ladderway floor holes or ladderway platform holes, hatchways, and chutes.
- Protect openings that outer edge are 4 feet or more above a lower level with fall protection including:
- Guardrail systems,
- Safety net systems,
- Travel restraint systems, or
- Personal fall arrest systems.
- Provide fall protection in some acceptable form (e.g., guardrail systems, safety net systems, or personal fall protection systems).
- Train employees on proper use of fall protection systems.
- Select fall protection systems that are suitable to protect works.
- Maintain fall protection systems in safe working condition.
