OSHA convenes stakeholders for crane operator certification review

Sources: Occupational Safety and Health Administration; Jackson Lewis P.C., Reston, Va.; CP staff

The Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) will meet March 31-April 1 at the Department of Labor’s Washington, D.C., headquarters to weigh in on a proposed revision of operator qualification requirements in the OSHA Cranes and Derricks in Construction Standard.

An agency rule outlining revisions is aimed at providing more explicit training requirements and addressing whether certification a) means the operator is qualified to run the crane or the employer must make a separate and independent determination as such, and b) must address both type and capacity of the equipment for which an operator is certified. It responds to stakeholder concerns about a standard OSHA issued nearly five years ago with a 2014 compliance target, since extended to 2017.

Comprised of industry and labor representatives, the 15-member ACCSH advises the Secretary of Labor and Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health in formulation of standards affecting the construction industry, and on policy matters arising in administration of the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act and Occupational Safety and Health Act. Copies of the proposed standard revision can be obtained and comments on new operator certification requirements submitted here.

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