Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 001C Hazard:

29 CFR 1910.134(g)(1)(i)(A): Respirators with tight-fitting facepieces were worn by employees who had facial hair that came between the sealing surface of the facepiece and the face or that interfered with valve function: a) On or about November 16, 2023, and at times prior, employees were exposed to respiratory hazards, such as respirable crystalline silica, in that an employee was not clean shaven when wearing a N-95 respirator during stone cutting operations. Employees in the stone cutting shop are required to wear N-95s or half-face respirators when cutting or grinding and there was no worksite-specific rule that the employee should be clean shaven. The employer failed to ensure employees do not have facial hair when wearing respirators, exposing a stone cutting employees to inhalation hazards such as silica.