Planning Ahead for Fall Protection
Date Posted: 02/17/2024
According to the Labor and Industries Department of Safety and Health (DOSH), Falls are the number one serious hazard for workers in most industries that can result in injuries or even death and accounted for 17 fatalities from 2017-2022 in Washington State. From a national perspective and according to statistics published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), there were 351 workplace fatalities in construction nationally due to falls to a lower level in 2020.
How and Where Falls are Occurring
According to a recent national survey conducted by the BLS:
17% of the workers who fell were loading and unloading material when the fall occurred.
13% of the workers who fell were involved in operating, repairing, cleaning, or installing equipment.
10% of the workers were performing carpentry tasks.
The remaining activities that resulted in falls included painting, welding, roof work, sheet metal work, and bricklaying.
The BLS study also asked participants to describe their specific movements during the fall.
28% percent of the workers who fell said they were climbing up or down from an elevated position or location.
13% of the workers were walking at the time they fell.
11% of the workers were stepping from one surface to another.
10% of the workers were moving backward.
Adequate fall protection and equipment use could have prevented most of the fatalities and injuries reported in the BLS study.
Unsafe Acts and Unsafe Conditions
The risk of falls is virtually present in every single workplace. However, the factors that can lead to a fall vary greatly. Many unsafe acts by employees as well as unsafe conditions, lead to fall incidents. Falls often result from a series of contributing factors. They are often the result of multiple dangerous conditions and hazardous actions combined. Because of this, it is essential to look at unsafe conditions and unsafe acts to recognize dangerous situations when working at heights.
Unsafe acts are any actions or behaviors that put ourselves or others at risk of harm. These could include using improper tools, failing to wear proper personal protective equipment (PPE), working without proper authorization, or simply being careless or distracted on the job. Unsafe Conditions can be defined as workplace environment risks to workers that may or may not have been identified, such as biological, chemical, electrical, environmental, mechanical, and physical conditions.
Some examples of unsafe conditions and unsafe acts are shown below:
Unsafe Conditions:
Unguarded edges
Open holes
Improper guardrails
Damaged equipment (ladders, stairs, safety equipment, etc.)
Slippery conditions
Unmarked elevation changes
Unsafe Acts:
Working at heights without fall protection or fall prevention methods in place
Improper use of ladders
Leaning over guardrails
Ignoring barricades
Using makeshift platforms or using equipment not as intended
How Can Falls Be Prevented?
According to the WA Department of Labor and Industries National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction (wa.gov) and OSHA's Fall Prevention Campaign | Occupational Safety and Health Administration, there are three primary ways to prevent falls.
Plan ahead to get the job done safely: When working from heights, plan projects to ensure the job is done safely. Begin by deciding how the job will be done, what tasks will be involved, and what safety equipment may be needed to complete each task.
When estimating the cost of a job, include safety equipment and plan to have all the necessary equipment and tools available at the construction site. For example, in a roofing job, consider all the different fall hazards, such as holes or skylights and leading edges, then plan and select fall protection suitable to that work, such as guardrails, personal fall restraint, personal fall arrest systems (PFAS), or other fall prevention techniques. Use a Fall Protection Work Plan as a tool to pre-plan and protect workers from fall hazards.
Provide the right equipment: Workers exposed to falling from heights are at risk for severe injury or death if they should fall. To protect these workers, provide fall protection and the right equipment for the job, including the right kinds of ladders, scaffolds, and safety equipment.
Use the right ladder or scaffold to get the job done safely. For roof work, if workers use personal fall arrest systems (PFAS), provide a harness for each worker who needs to tie off to the adequate anchor. Make sure the PFAS fits, and regularly inspect it for safe use.
Train everyone to use the equipment safely: Every worker should be trained on proper set-up and safe use of equipment they use on the job. In addition, train all workers to recognize hazards on the job.
Resources
DOSH Fall (From Heights) Resource Page
National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction (wa.gov)
OSHA's Fall Prevention Campaign | Occupational Safety and Health Administration
