Text For Citation: 03 Item/Group: 001 Hazard: FALLING

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees in that employees were exposed to: In the cleaning department, employees were exposed to the hazard of falls of approximately 7 to 11 feet from the top of street cleaning trucks to the concrete floor below. Employees climb the trucks for the purpose of cleaning and buffing, and there were no means to protect the employees from falls. Feasible and effective abatement can be expected to include, but is not limited to: 1) Install a suspended static line or life line in an arrangement which can be used by employees during the cleaning and buffing operation when they are required to work on top of the street cleaning trucks 7 to 11 feet high, and employ a program requiring the use of safety belts and lanyards attached to the safety lines. 2) Construct a portable scaffold system which allows the system to be adjusted to meet the design of the various sizes of street cleaning trucks and provides perimeter guarding aroundthe truck when employees are required to work on top of the truck. DISCLAIMERS: a) The employer is not limited to the abatement methods suggested by OSHA. b) The methods explained are general and may not be effective in all cases. c) The employer is responsible for selecting and carrying out an appropriate abatement method.