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Occupational Hazards magazine
On the surface, Kentucky and Utah have
about as much in common as horse
racing and downhill skiing.
But when it comes to workplace health and
safety, both states have quite a bit in common.
For one thing, both states’ top workplace
safety administrators are concerned that there
have been too many fatal falls in their respective
construction industries in recent years.
And those same administrators share the
view that OSHA’s current enforcement policy
for fall protection in residential construction – STD 3-0.1A – lacks the teeth to reverse
those trends.
Consequently, Kentucky and Utah – both
of which have OSHA state programs – no
longer follow the federal guidelines.
In Utah, where falls “far and away” are the
biggest cause of fatalities in the construction
industry, it made sense to back away from
the federal guidelines, which “seem to ease
off fall protection for people working on residential
construction projects,” explained
Larry Patrick, administrator for Utah Occupational
Safety and Health (UOSH).
“People wonder why we’re the only states
that have done this, and I wonder why the
other states haven’t,” Patrick said.
As of this past January, the fall protection
guidelines for construction set forth in 29 CFR
1926 Subpart M are the law of the land in Utah.
In Kentucky, where there were 61 construction
falls reported from 1999 through 2004 –
two of those resulting in fatalities in 2004 – the
Kentucky Occupational Safety and Health Program
(KY OSH) similarly was “uncomfortable
with the provisions” of the federal fall protection
guidelines, according to KY OSH Safety
Standards Specialist Chuck Stribling.
On Feb. 16, 2005, KY OSH issued its own
instruction for fall protection in residential
construction, which explains that residential
construction firms must provide fall protection
measures either in accordance with 29
CFR 1926 Subpart M or with state guidelines
detailed in the Kentucky instruction.
“Back in 1994, when the interim guidelines
came out, feasibility was the issue,” said Steve
Morrison, executive director of KY OSH. “Here
it is, 2005, and there are methods, products
and procedures that have been developed to
facilitate compliance. The program believes
it’s feasible now to provide fall protection to
employees during residential construction.”
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