How are those in California working with the OSHA fall protection rules on residential and commercial?
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Apparently someone got thrown in jail for not having fall protection for his employees awhile back.
FLASH REPORT!
Jail Time for Roofing Owner, Foreman in 2008 Fatality
Against a backdrop where more and more California employers are becoming concerned about Cal/OSHA’s new administration, and more than one year after they were indicted by the San Francisco County grand jury for involuntary manslaughter in the death of a roofer, two men have accepted a plea deal and have each been sentenced to a year in jail.
The case stems from a Jan. 16, 2008, incident that killed 37-year-old Antonio Martinez, who fell almost 40 feet from an apartment building to a concrete sidewalk. The victim was working on a drain hole at the edge of the roof and stepped backward and off the roof. Martinez was not wearing fall protection; the employer did not provide supervision of his work along the roof edge and failed to provide railings, scaffolds or barriers to prevent a fall.
Foreman Kim was present when Martinez fell. Shim and Kim told Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) investigators that “they did not believe fall protection was required for roofing work on flat roofs.” The day after the incident, DOSH investigators observed two workers, including a foreman, working at the same roof edge with no protection.
That lead DOSH to cite the company for a willful violation of Construction Safety Orders ﾧ1730(b) for knowingly installing roof coverings while there was a fall hazard. It also cited the roofing company for a serious, accident-related violation of the same safety order for not protecting workers from falls; and an alleged regulatory violation of ﾧ342(a) for failing to timely report the fatality. California C&R appealed the citations and now that the criminal case is concluded, the appeal can proceed.
Sam Hyung Goo Shim, owner of California C&R, Inc., pleaded guilty to four felonies, including involuntary manslaughter, willfully violating a Cal/OSHA safety order causing death as well as insurance and tax violations. Foreman Jwa Young Kim pled to a misdemeanor violation of California Labor Code ﾧ6425 (willful violation causing death).
Wow that is no joke, every roof exposes you to a fall of over
feet, so technically you need to physically bid any job that requires a roof walk even if you own the business and send employees? Also manslaughter? I will pass on that for sure, thats no joke
The info following is not complete and is not an alternative to legal info from OSHA. It is just some pointers I’ve got from experience. You should be trained in person by the right individual:
A temporary flat anchor nailed into a peak spot near the middle of the roof is great as long as the anchor is strong and the nails are long enough (all can be bought at home depot or online). Remember though that if the roof is super long you may want multiple points. If you fall while at a corner that is far from the middle of the roof, you may hit the ground before your line tightens. Two lines r better than one but not necessarily legally needed. Always check your rope, rope grab, vest, and anchor before each job and never use equipment involved in a fall or a cut. Never lean ur weight against the line except to check the anchor strength before you walk away from the anchor. Always check that your line is straight while AND after you r done walking and ready to clean.
You should let the homeowners know u will be nailing it in for osha reasons and that you will take it out and then put seal in the holes you’ve made (like a satellite guy is supposed to do when removing a nailed in satellite). Nail into a stud, of course. You’ll feel it.
When u can’t nail in a temporary anchor, there are still options. Tie off to anything that is 5k pound certified if u r an employee. Unfortunately nothing is ever certified on houses. Thus u might tie off of thick tree trunks, the correct part of a truck, etc. Put peices of carpet around any sharp corner or rough surface that the rope will be tied to or rub against.
Chimneys WILL break. Don’t let them fool you.
Sometimes ladder work might be the only option. I’ve seen guys using roof vents to slip long anchor poles into them, but I’ve heard enough bad about them to not want to use that option.
Always have your rope grab above you or behind you. You do not want it under you when and if you fall. It might not lock to stop you from falling.
Continue to keep your anchor on the opposite side of where u r working. Keep slack tight with nothing redirecting the line or two (like an ac unit or a vent) and have a helper to get u to safety if u end up hanging off. Have a fall plan written out and signed by your guys.
Check all local laws for exact fall arrest regulations.
we have the same problem here in Oregon…we have adopted the company policy that any time an employee steps off the ladder he has to be tied off. So we use the full body harness and secure it to the hitch of our truck, The rope goes up and over the roof (OSHA lets you get up to the peak to set your ropes but then you have to be secured) and the employee climbs up using a rope grab from the opposing side. To do the front we either have to find a secure point in the back to tie off to.
One thing I found on line was a device that AC Locker here on WCR has on his site that slides down a vent pipe in the customers roof and serves as a fall arrest grab point…you could damage a persons roof if an employee fell but who cares if they dont hit the ground…
