Fall Protection in Construction: When It Is Required

This standard lists the construction situations where you must provide fall protection and the systems allowed in each. In most, the trigger is a fall of 6 feet (1.8 m) or more. It also covers falling objects. The systems must meet the criteria in 1926.502 (1926.501(a)(1)).

Who it applies to

Subpart M sets fall protection requirements for construction workplaces covered under 29 CFR part 1926. It does not apply when employees are making an inspection, investigation, or assessment of workplace conditions before the actual start of construction work or after all construction work has been completed (1926.500(a)(1)).

Other rules set the fall protection requirements for scaffolds (subpart L), cranes and derricks (subpart CC), steel erection work except towers and tanks (subpart R), certain tunneling equipment (subpart S), erection of tanks and communication and broadcast towers (1926.105), certain electric transmission and distribution line work (subpart V), and stairways and ladders (subpart X) (1926.500(a)(2)(i) through (vii)).

What the standard requires

Below, "a conventional system" means a guardrail system, safety net system, or personal fall arrest system (see "infeasible" in 1926.500(b)).

Check the surface first

You must determine whether the walking/working surfaces your employees are to work on have the strength and structural integrity to support them safely. Employees may work on those surfaces only when they do (1926.501(a)(2)).

Unprotected sides and edges

Each employee on a walking/working surface with an unprotected side or edge 6 feet (1.8 m) or more above a lower level must be protected by a conventional system (1926.501(b)(1)). "Unprotected" means there is no wall or guardrail system at least 39 inches (1.0 m) high, except at entrances to points of access (1926.500(b)).

Leading edges

• Each employee constructing a leading edge 6 feet or more above lower levels must be protected by a conventional system. Exception: when you can demonstrate that using these systems is infeasible or creates a greater hazard, you must develop and implement a fall protection plan that meets 1926.502(k). A note places the burden on the employer to establish that a plan is appropriate (1926.501(b)(2)(i)).
• Each employee not doing the leading edge work, on a surface 6 feet or more above a lower level where leading edges are under construction, must be protected by a conventional system (1926.501(b)(2)(ii)).

Hoist areas

Each employee in a hoist area must be protected from falling 6 feet or more by guardrail systems or personal fall arrest systems. If guardrail systems (or a chain, gate, or guardrail), or portions of them, are removed to facilitate hoisting and an employee must lean through the access opening or out over its edge, that employee must be protected by a personal fall arrest system (1926.501(b)(3)).

Holes

A hole is a gap or void 2 inches (5.1 cm) or more in its least dimension in a floor, roof, or other walking/working surface (1926.500(b)). Holes here include skylights. Each employee on walking/working surfaces must be protected from:

• Falling through holes more than 6 feet above lower levels, by personal fall arrest systems, covers, or guardrail systems erected around the holes (1926.501(b)(4)(i)).
• Tripping in or stepping into or through holes, by covers (1926.501(b)(4)(ii)).
• Objects falling through holes, by covers (1926.501(b)(4)(iii)).

Excavations

Each employee at the edge of an excavation 6 feet or more in depth must be protected by guardrail systems, fences, or barricades when the excavation is not readily seen because of plant growth or other visual barrier (1926.501(b)(7)(i)). At a well, pit, shaft, or similar excavation 6 feet or more in depth, each employee at the edge must be protected by guardrail systems, fences, barricades, or covers (1926.501(b)(7)(ii)).

Low-slope roofs

A low-slope roof has a slope less than or equal to 4 in 12 (1926.500(b)). Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), each employee engaged in roofing activities on a low-slope roof with unprotected sides and edges 6 feet or more above lower levels must be protected by one of these (1926.501(b)(10)):

• A conventional system
• A warning line system combined with a guardrail system, safety net system, personal fall arrest system, or safety monitoring system
• On roofs 50 feet (15.25 m) or less in width, a safety monitoring system alone

Steep roofs

A steep roof has a slope greater than 4 in 12 (1926.500(b)). Slope is vertical to horizontal. Each employee on a steep roof with unprotected sides and edges 6 feet or more above lower levels must be protected by guardrail systems with toeboards, safety net systems, or personal fall arrest systems (1926.501(b)(11)).

Residential construction

Each employee engaged in residential construction activities 6 feet or more above lower levels must be protected by a conventional system, unless another provision in paragraph (b) provides for an alternative measure. The same exception and note as for leading edges apply (1926.501(b)(13)).

Surfaces not otherwise addressed

Except as provided in 1926.500(a)(2) or in 1926.501(b)(1) through (b)(14), each employee on a walking/working surface 6 feet or more above lower levels must be protected by a conventional system (1926.501(b)(15)).

Paragraph (b) also has separate rules, not summarized here, for formwork and reinforcing steel (b)(5), ramps, runways, and other walkways (b)(6), work 6 feet or more above dangerous equipment (b)(8)(ii), overhand bricklaying (b)(9), precast concrete erection (b)(12), and wall openings (b)(14).

Falling objects

When an employee is exposed to falling objects, you must have each employee wear a hard hat and implement one of these measures (1926.501(c)):

• Erect toeboards, screens, or guardrail systems to prevent objects from falling from higher levels.
• Erect a canopy structure, and keep potential fall objects far enough from the edge that they would not go over it if accidentally displaced.
• Barricade the area where objects could fall, prohibit employees from entering it, and likewise keep objects that may fall far enough from the edge.

Training

You must provide a training program for each employee who might be exposed to fall hazards. It must enable each employee to recognize the hazards of falling and train each one in the procedures to follow to minimize them (1926.503(a)(1)).

You must assure that each employee has been trained, as necessary, by a competent person qualified in the areas the standard lists (1926.503(a)(2)). You must retrain when you have reason to believe a trained employee does not have the required understanding and skill (1926.503(c)).

Written programs and records

• Training: prepare a written certification record with the name or other identity of the employee trained, the date(s) of training, and the signature of the trainer or the employer (1926.503(b)(1)). The latest certification must be maintained (1926.503(b)(2)).
• Fall protection plan (if you rely on that exception): it must be prepared by a qualified person, developed specifically for the site, and kept up to date (1926.502(k)(1)). A copy with all approved changes must be maintained at the job site (1926.502(k)(3)).

Easy-to-miss requirements

• The cover requirement for tripping in or stepping into holes states no height threshold (1926.501(b)(4)(ii)).
• Each employee less than 6 feet above dangerous equipment must be protected from falling into or onto it by guardrail systems or equipment guards (1926.501(b)(8)(i)).
• A leading edge is considered an "unprotected side and edge" during periods when it is not actively and continuously under construction (1926.500(b)).

Related guides

• Fall protection training
• Scaffolding
• Excavations

Source

This guide is based on the text of 29 CFR 1926.501 as published on osha.gov. The regulation itself always controls. States that run their own OSHA-approved State Plans may have additional or stricter rules.