General Duty Clause

OSHA’s General Duty clause is just a few words with a simple meaning, yet sweeping in power and importance.  The General Duty clause is intended to cover everything not covered by other regulations.

Section 5 of the OSH Act of 1970 says simply that a) the employer shall furnish a workplace free of recognized hazards and b) shall obey the law.  Read it here…  (http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=OSHACT&p_id=3359)

In every class I teach, I ask the students learn to walk in to work every day, look around and ask: “What will harm me here, today?”  The employer should continually ask what hazard is in the workplace that is likely to cause death or serious physical harm to the employees.

Learn to spot all hazard regardless of how small or innocent-looking the situation may be.  Look carefully at the picture below.  List the hazards you spot.  I see six definite hazards and four more which possibly exist.

My list:

1. Cleats on roof are not proper fall protection after June 2011. Not very good before, but a violation after.

2. Two men on roof not wearing proper fall arrest harnesses.

3. One man on roof has no hard hat.

4. The makeshift “scaffold” is prohibited.

5. The site is a housekeeping mess.

6. None of the workers have safety glasses.

Possible hazards:

7. Ladder type and use.

8. Do not see a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) in use.

9. Appears to be loose gear or tools on the roof.

10. Workers are wearing shorts – significant exposure to cuts and abrasions.

How many did you spot?  Did you see any hazards I missed?

Some of the hazards we come across on a daily basis seem so small, but can cause significant injury. If one of the men on the roof slips even a little, he could fall to the ground where he could hit his head on the way down or on the mess of trash under him.

Many will complain that OSHA will find something.  They probably will because they are looking for all hazards, not just the obvious ones.

Have a safety professional look carefully at your facility and show you how to spot hazards.  Learn what the law allows and prohibits.  More important, protect your workers.  You want to go home each night to your family – so do they!

See our Web site: SafetyRich