Builders Association of Minnesota

A new set of federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fall protection rules are being required of all residential contractors as of today, June 16, 2011, yet there has been little education provided on the new requirements. BAM President Todd Bjsertedt commented, “Similar to the EPA lead paint requirements, education for the contractor is a second thought and is lagging far behind while enforcement is racing out front making it difficult to comply with the new rules.”

Federal field staff is being directed to assist the residential construction industry in complying with the new standards and builders are being encouraged to contact OSHA’s free onsite consultation program. In a letter to the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), federal OSHA announced a 90-day phase in plan beginning June 16.

If a residential contractor is complying with the previous standard, Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of OSHA says, “I will be instructing OSHA's field staff that for the first three months that the new directive is in effect, OSHA will refrain from issuing fall protection citations to employers who are using the protective measures in the old directive.” Read the full letter here: http://www.osha.gov/doc/letter_nahb.html

Read the full press release here.