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• Standard Number: 1910.28

July 23, 1990

Mr. C. Gregory Reynolds
Vice President of Operations
Bay Nets Incorporated
135 Wood Road
Braintree, Massachusetts 02184

Dear Mr. Reynolds:

This is in response to your letter of June 21, concerning the Occupational Safety and health Administration's (OSHA) acceptance and treatment of abatement methods specified in the proposed standard, 29 CFR 1910.28, Fall Protection Systems.

As we stated in our May 29 letter, OSHA is accepting the abatement methods specified in the proposed standard. If OSHA observes abatement of fall hazards only by methods mentioned in the proposed standard, 29 CFR 1910.28, this would be considered a de minimis violation with no citation issued and no penalty assessed. In other words, there would be no citation, fine, or penalty, when an employer provides fall protection in accordance with this proposed standard. However, please be aware of the burden placed on the employer by the proposed standard at 1910.28(a)(1), to show that the use of a guardrail system is infeasible, if other methods of fall protection are utilized. Therefore, if a guardrail system is not utilized, and the employer cannot satisfactorily show OSHA that guardrails are not feasible, then citations and fines may be appropriate.

If we may be of further assistance, please contact us. Thank you for your interest in safety and health.

Sincerely,



Patricia K. Clark Directorate
Designate Directorate of Compliance Programs

Standard Interpretations - Table of Contents Standard Interpretations - Table of Contents