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OSHA Tackles Issues Contractors Value
Washington — The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) currently is taking up several issues that are of importance to electrical contractors. One of them is that the agency announced it will extend the public comment period for 45 days on the agency's Cranes and Derricks Proposed Rule. A notice on the extension will be published in the Federal Register soon. The proposal was originally published in the Oct. 9, 2008, Federal Register. The proposed rule addresses the key hazards associated with construction cranes and derricks.
OSHA is extending the comment period because of the length of the original Federal Register notice, the comprehensive nature of the proposed rule, and the number of requests for public comment contained within the Notice.
In addition, through the OSHA Outreach Training Program (which is a standard part of the NECA-IBEW training provided to electrical workers), individuals who complete a one-week OSHA trainer course are authorized to teach 10-hour and 30-hour courses in construction or general industry safety and health hazard recognition and prevention. Authorized trainers can receive OSHA course completion cards for their students. Over the past three years, over 1.6 million students have received training through this program.
In a matter that several groups in the electrical industry are concerned about, the European Commission, the executive branch of the European Union, has submitted a formal proposal requesting that OSHA permit the use of a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity (SDoC) as an alternative to the Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories (NRTLs) product-approval process. NRTLs are independent, third-party laboratories that have met OSHA's requirements for performing safety testing and certification of electrical and other products used in the workplace.
However, since it would be risky to rely on a European manufacturer's word that its products meet safety standards that are acceptable in the U.S., given the differences in our manufacturing processes. Lessening the long-standing normal conformance assessment process is an obvious invitation for compromise in quality and safety. NECA and NEMA, for instance, are speaking out against this proposal.
The final rule on "Clarification of Employers' Duty to Provide Personal Protective Equipment and Train Each Employee" was published in the Federal Register on Dec. 12. The final rule amendments do not add new compliance obligations, but they do stress that each employee not protected in accordance with OSHA standards may be considered a separate violation and penalties assessed accordingly.
"This technical correction to the PPE standard brings it in line with other OSHA safety and health standards," said Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Thomas M. Stohler. "By making this change, those few employers who egregiously violate the OSHA PPE standard can be held fully accountable for violations affecting each employee who is not provided proper PPE. This kind of vigorous enforcement is a vital component of OSHA's balanced approach to workplace safety and health."
