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Four Major OSHA Mistakes to Avoid in 2020

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Anybody who works in an industrial or manufacturing field knows how important OSHA compliance is. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is responsible for policing work sites for unsafe practices and any infraction can incur a major fine or even halt operations.

Maintaining perfect compliance is certainly a challenge, but knowledge and planning ahead can help. You need to ensure that you stay clear of any costly OSHA mistakes, including the following four common ones, as you head into 2020.

Lack of Fall Protection or Scaffolding

When you think about the risk of falling or the need for scaffolding, you might imagine a construction site and indeed these standards are important in the construction industry.

When it comes to fall risk, every industry needs to be proactive in preventing any potential accidents and maintaining OSHA standard compliance. If you are working at elevated heights, scaffolding is absolutely imperative to ensure safety and compliance.

Exposure to Respiratory Risk Without Protection

There are many environments where staff are exposed to respiratory risks, but this risk can usually be mitigated by the use of personal protective equipment (PPE). If an employer does not provide PPE, employees may be exposed to such risks and suffer unnecessary injury.

It is vital that respirators be available and worn by staff in any area where there may be airborne hazards.

Insufficient or Improper Hazard Communication

Lack of hazard communication is yet another common OSHA infraction that must be avoided at all costs. Hazards are inevitable in the workplace, but if there is a known risk present, it is absolutely imperative that it be announced and identified properly.

Further, employers must provide clear instructions to employees in order to ensure they are able to avoid the hazard. Failure to comply with this OSHA standard is incredibly dangerous.

Risk of Lockout/Tagout

At some point, the machinery in your workplace will need to be serviced or repaired by a professional. Whether it’s quick routine maintenance or a lengthy repair, you need to ensure that the personnel completing the work is safe while they service the machine.

If a piece of equipment were to power on while it is being serviced, it would likely cause serious injury or even death to the maintenance professional. A lockout or tagout is used to isolate the energy produced by a machine or prevent its operation until the maintenance is complete. 

Failure to utilize this precaution can be a deadly OSHA violation.

If you want to ensure all your bases are covered and you are OSHA compliant, Construction Safety Experts can help. Contact our team of professionals online or call  (866) 463-0669.

Visit safety-xperts.com for a full list of our services and expertise today. 

The Basics of OSHA Compliance Training

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Here at Safety Experts, we offer extensive OSHA compliance training regimens. Both the 10 and 30 hour OSHA Construction Safety Seminars are available to accommodate any working environments in which safety is a concern. These seminars are delivered by OSHA authorized safety instructors and focus on recognition, avoidance, and prevention of safety and health hazards in workplaces in the construction industry.

All of our OSHA compliance consultants have at least five years of construction safety experience and have completed the Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Construction Industry course.

OSHA 10-Hour Course

The first part of the OSHA compliance training process is an introduction to OSHA. It covers workers’ rights, employer responsibilities and how to file a safety complaint. The introduction also provides participants with a sample weekly fatality and catastrophe report, a material safety data sheet and the OSHA Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses.

The next subject discussed is the Construction Focus Four training, which looks at the four most common types of accidents that occur on construction sites: Falls, Caught-In or -Between, Struck-By and Electrocution. The course includes several OSHA compliance consultant-delivered lectures, handouts and various group activities. Covered subjects include:

  • Ladder Safety
  • How to verify that fall-prevention equipment is in working condition and properly worn
  • A briefing on nail-gun safety
  • A briefing on cranes and rigging safety
  • A discussion on electrical safety, including risks

Participants undergo an examination at the end of the course to verify retention of this important information. Participants are required to identify major hazards, describe types of hazards, protect themselves from these hazards and recognize employer requirements to protect workers from these hazards.

After the Focus Four training, Participants are given the opportunity to select two, two-hour training classes from the following topics:

  • Cranes, Derricks, Hoists, Elevators and Conveyors
  • Excavations
  • Material Handling, Storage, Use and Disposal
  • Scaffolds
  • Stairways and Ladders
  • Tools – Hand and Power

OSHA 30-Hour Course

The beginning of the 30-hour course is similar to the 10-hour course. The first segment is and introduction to OSHA, followed by a two-hour course on Managing Safety and Health, which involves topics such as job site inspections, accident prevention programs, management commitment and employee involvement. The Focus Four training follows and is presented in the same fashion as the 10-hour course.

After the Focus Four class concludes, participants are required to complete 12 hours of training on the following elective courses:

    • Concrete and Masonry Construction
    • Confined Space Entry
  • Cranes, Derricks, Hoists, Elevators and Conveyors
  • Ergonomics
  • Excavations
  • Fire Protection and Prevention
  • Materials Handling, Storage, Use and Disposal
  • Motor Vehicles, Mechanized Equipment and Marine Operations; Rollover Protective Structures and Overhead Protection; and Signs, Signals and Barricades
  • Powered Industrial Vehicles
  • Safety and Health Programs
  • Scaffolds
  • Steel Erection
  • Tools – Hand and Power
  • Welding and Cutting

After the completion of the course material, participants are required to complete an assessment to verify retention of the material.

For more about OSHA guidelines and safety training, take a look at Occupational Safety Council of America.