osha, kilts, and construction

[yoippari]

Haven't been around hear much but a question that involves my kilt wearing did arise at work recently which has sparked my return.

I am a parts runner for a plumbing company. Most of the time I am driving either my pickup or the company's little 5 speed ranger with a pipe rack, or waiting for the Will Call counter to pull the parts that in theory should have been pulled by the time I got there. When I deliver the parts it is usually to a construction site.

The other day one of the plumbers said that osha regulations require covered legs at construction sites (because of loose wireing and such) or I (or I guess the company, not sure on that point) could get a fine. I know I have seen people working in shorts and this is the first I have heard of this covered leg thing outside of a remodel we did for a local potato chip maker which I was told the regulations had to do with the food production, not the construction.

So anyway, I have looked around the osha site and the only references I have found to legs have to do with scaffolding and ladders. "Pants" gives quite a few results but nothing I can find is applicable. Was the guy misinformed or do I need to be wearing pants fulltime at work?

I should probably e-mail osha with this but I figured someone here might have already done the legwork.

[Canuck]

[QUOTE=

The other day one of the plumbers said that osha regulations require covered legs at construction sites (because of loose wireing and such) or I (or I guess the company, not sure on that point) could get a fine. I know I have seen people working in shorts and this is the first I have heard of this covered leg thing outside of a remodel we did for a local potato chip maker which I was told the regulations had to do with the food production, not the construction.

.[/QUOTE]
I believe in Canada or at least in Ontario pants are to be worn on construction sites. In theatres during set-up the stage is now considered a construction site so hard hats, harness and long pants are a requirement. However if a woman was to work on the site wearing a skirt she can not be turned away. Given that, a few guys have been wearing kilts.

[Cawdorian]

Many companies have safety requirements that exceed OSHA Standards, my employer is one of those companies. Long pants are required on all of our construction sites.

[bubba]

I'd rite or call OSHA. You may well be required to cover your legs while working at a construction site, but just delivering parts to one may be a different thing.

[Cawdorian]

The specific citation is Subpart E, 1926.95, the employer is required to protect the employee from specific hazards encountered in the workplace. Many employers have safety policies that are more stringent than OSHA. If the safety policy of the employer requires long pants on their construction sites, the employer can be cited and fined by OSHA for not enforcing their own safety policy. This policy is designed to protect the employee from cuts, scrapes, abraisions, dermatitis and exposure to various cemicals.

Long pants are required on all of our construction sites. If you show up to deliver materials without long pants, hard hat, safety vest and safety glasses you would not be allowed to enter the construction site, if you were allowed to enter the site, you would not be allowed to leave the truck cab. My employer is engaged in Highway and Heavy Construction. Residential contractors operate in a totally different environment, many are not familiar with OSHA regulations.

OSHA tends to concentrate most of their inspection and enforcement efforts on the medium and larger contractors.

[MacSimoin]

Having worked in the construction business in years past I agree with Bubba and Cawdorian, that is if this issue is of serious concern for you.

Have a look here: OSHA Criteria for personal protective equipment. I don't know if it will help but it's worth a quick read if you haven't seen it yet.

If I were you, I'd approach your own boss first and foremost to see if it's potentially a legal issue; secondly, when you visit a jobsite, inquire with the jobsite foreman (or foreperson, for all you PC types) on whether or not your kilt is in violation of company standards. I wouldn't take the plumber at his word although I'm sure he was probably correct when it comes to his own being there. Hope this helps.

[Southern Breeze]

I think it's a matter of common sense as well. I work in landscaping and there are numerous occaisions when I wear pants. Some of those are wet and muddy areas, applying chemicals, operating chainsaws, jackhammers etc. Kilts ARE nice to to work in but they have their limits.

[Frank McGrath]

The next best thing to do is to call you state osha office. Maryland has their own safety office that is usually called out by the Md State Police whenever there is an injury on the jobb. Hospitals are required (in Md) to notify the MSP whenever someone comes in injured. The last company I worked for was fined BIG for a Fork lift related injury and the worst part was the three morons working on the lift were not osha spec trained. I tried several times, but operations manager says we need you guys on the floor. Politics. I never got to train them. But all this happened before I got my first kilt, so now I know better.

Frank McGrath :

[Angus MacSpey]

The general rule is that the larger the company or project, the more strict the safety regulations (or safety B.S., depending on your point of view.)

I've seen earthmoving contractors that required hard hats INSIDE the cabs of scrapers. For those of you outside the business, Cat scraper cabs are strong enough to withstand another scraper being dropped on them without being crushed. Thus, this rule serves no purpose whatsoever. Most do require long pants, and when I was in that business, I didn't argue. It made sense. Some I worked for allowed shorts and never issued hard hats. Same exact kind of work.

As far as your situation is concerned, I have a hard time believing loose wiring is a problem when a job is in the plumbing phase, since electricians usually follow the plumbers. Wearing pants rather than a kilt is unlikely to protect you from loose wiring anyhow.

But, in this litigious age, you would be well served to check with OSHA and the G.C. Should anything ever happen to you, regardless if kilts are to blame, the G.C.'s insurance company may deny claims. That's what insurance companies do - deny claims for any possible glimmer of reason or excuse. I can't blame a contractor for wanting to cover his behind.

[Cawdorian]

OSHA's fine structure is based on the number of people a company employs, if a company has a large number of employees, the fine for a violation will be greater.