Never Forget 343 Gave It All On 9-11-2001
OSHA Information
What are OSHA standards?
State and local government rescue teams in state OSHA jurisdictions are required to comply with all applicable OSHA standards and even volunteer teams may be covered in some states.
In non_OSHA states (i.e. a state which does not have its own state OSHA program), even though OSHA regulations may not apply to state or local fire or rescue agencies, fire departments should make every effort to comply with OSHA standards since they can be effective in protecting the health and safety of rescuers.
Application of OSHA Standards
The regulations issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor (Federal OSHA) are binding only upon private sector employers. Therefore, a fire department (or fire brigade) that is part of a private company must comply with all of the applicable OSHA regulations. An example of a private sector rescue team would include an on-site industrial fire brigade that performs confined space rescue.
Such a team would be required to comply with the OSHA Permit Required Confined Space standard, 29 CFR §1910.146. In addition, all Federal government agencies, including Federal fire departments, must comply with all OSHA regulations (or issue standards of their own that are at least as effective as the OSHA standards in protecting workers).
State and local government agencies are not subject to the regulations established by Federal OSHA. Although the Federal OSHA standards are not directly applicable to state and local fire departments or rescue agencies, the Federal OSHA law gives each state the option to operate under its own occupational health and safety programs.
The states that choose to operate their own program are sometimes called "state OSHA jurisdictions", or simply "OSHA states" and are required by Federal law to cover state and local government employees in the same manner as they do private sector employees. As of July 1995, there were 23 states and two territories, which were state OSHA jurisdictions (these include Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wyoming, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands).
Although a handful of state OSHA jurisdictions have issued their own regulations that apply specifically to fire and rescue departments (including California, Michigan, and Washington), most state OSHA jurisdictions have simply adopted the Federal standards. This means that in most state OSHA jurisdictions, public sector agencies, including state and local fire departments and rescue agencies, must comply with the Federal OSHA standards.
Fire departments in state OSHA jurisdictions should contact their state occupational safety and health agency to determine what standards apply to them.
Are Volunteers Exempt from OSHA Laws?
The applicability of OSHA regulations to volunteer fire departments or volunteer firefighters is generally determined by state governments. Generally, under the Federal rules, the applicability of OSHA laws is dependent on the existence of an employer/employee relationship, unless the state has chosen to extend the OSHA laws to volunteers as in the case of Minnesota. An employer/employee relationship exists if there is monetary compensation given by the employer to the employees. Federal OSHA does not regulate purely volunteer operations because there is no employer/employee relationship, however, each state may choose to extend the OSHA regulations or other laws to cover volunteer firefighters. (This is the case in several states including Michigan and New York.)
States, which are non_OSHA states, may have their own regulations over volunteer firefighters, but generally OSHA laws do not apply to volunteers in non_OSHA states.
Generally speaking, if a volunteer receives any type of monetary compensation for responding on a call, attending training, or any other activity, the volunteer can be considered an employee. In some cases where a fire department offers workers compensation protection to volunteers, courts have found that a volunteer can be considered an employee. A volunteer who is reimbursed only for expenses related to fire department operations is usually not considered an employee. Expenses could cover the cost of response in a vehicle to a call.
It is wise to talk with your attorney and with your state OSHA office for more information. The figure below will help you determine whether OSHA laws apply to volunteers in your state.
Be advised, however, that regardless of whether or not the OSHA regulations are legally enforced on your department, they provided important guidance on appropriate safety measures and considerations for many types of situations. Every rescuer should be properly trained and equipped, should have knowledge of rescue hazards, and should know how to perform rescue operations safely.
Volunteers Not Exempt from OSHA Regulations on Hazardous Materials Training
As previously noted, OSHA regulations do not apply to many volunteer fire and rescue organizations. However, OSHA regulations on hazardous materials training apply to all volunteers. This is because the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) incorporates OSHA standards into its regulations, and the EPA regulations are applicable to all firefighters, volunteer or paid.
Legal Considerations When a Public Fire Department Provides Services for a Private Entity
Some public sector fire and rescue departments function as the primary response team for industries or as a back-up response team for industrial fire and rescue teams. The industry may be required to provide a firefighting or rescue capability for its employees who are performing hazardous duties; however, the industry may choose to have the local fire department respond as the rescue team in lieu of forming its own in-house team. In this manner, the fire department may be the first responder, back up, or support team for an industry.
In OSHA states, public sector fire and rescue departments must comply with their state OSHA regulations as is discussed previously. In non_OSHA states, a public sector firefighting or rescue team can function as the primary or back-up emergency response teams for an industry but the public sector team is not necessarily required to comply with the OSHA standards. The industry, however, is required to ensure that a team responding from an outside agency is capable of meeting the requirements to fight fire, mitigate hazardous material incidents, or provide confined space rescue. The industry must also provide access to the potential rescue area(s) for training and familiarization. An industry cannot designate a local fire department as the provider of its required firefighting or confined space rescue service if that fire department does not have the personnel, training, and equipment necessary to conduct a confined space rescue operation. Which Affect the Fire Service
USC§654(a)(1): OSHA General Duty Clause
Overview
The General Duty Clause is an all-encompassing section of Federal legislation, which describes the responsibilities of employers. The clause is found in 29 USC §654(a)(1) and states, "Each employers shall furnish to each of his employees and employment a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees." The intent of the clause is to protect employees from workplace hazards establishing a responsibility of the employer to recognize and correct hazards. In general, an employer can be found to have violated this clause for failure to keep the workplace free of a recognized hazard which could have caused death or serious physical harm to an employee and which could have been corrected by some feasible method. Where there is no specific OSHA regulation that applies to a situation, OSHA may use national consensus standards (such as NFPA standards) to determine whether a workplace hazard violated the General Duty Clause.
Minnesota State Law 182.653 General Duties of Employers
Application to Fire and Rescue Personnel
The broad nature of this clause makes it applicable to nearly any fire or rescue related operation where there are hazards present. Basically, it requires fire and rescue agencies to identify hazards to which rescuers might be exposed and to reduce the likelihood of a hazard producing harm to rescuers. This can be done by simply removing the hazard or by providing rescuers the necessary procedures, training, and equipment to safely operate around the hazard.
29 CFR § 1910.156: Fire Brigades
Overview
This section establishes requirements for the provision and duties of a fire brigade/fire department by an employer.
Application to Fire and Rescue Personnel
This standard requires agencies to train and educate workers for emergency response activities, maintain and inspect firefighting equipment, and provide positive pressure respiratory protection devices in compliance with OSHA's Standard for Respiratory Protection (29 CFR 1910.134). Requirements also include the development of an organizational statement and ensuring that workers are physically fit to carry out their responsibilities.
29 CFR; 1910.132_.140: Personal Protective and Respiratory Equipment (includes 2 In_2 Out)
Overview
This section establishes general requirements for the employer to provide, test, inspect, and maintain personal protective equipment (PPE) for employees who are exposed to workplace hazards. Employees must be trained on proper us of equipment. §1910.134 addresses respiratory protection. The regulation requires that at least two employees enter the IDLH atmosphere and \ remain in visual or voice contact with one another at all times, and that at least two employees are located outside the IDLH atmosphere. All employees engaged in interior structural firefighting must use SCBAs. According to the regulation, one of the two individuals located outside the IDLH atmosphere may be assigned to an additional role, such as incident commander in charge of the emergency or safety officer, so long as this individual is able to perform assistance or rescue activities without jeopardizing the safety or health of any firefighter working at the incident. Furthermore, it states that nothing in the regulation is meant to preclude firefighters from performing emergency rescue activities before an entire team has assembled.
29 CFR § 1910.146: Permit Required Confined Spaces
Overview
The intent of this standard is to protect personnel who enter permit required confined spaces. A confined space is defined as an area that: Is large enough and so configured that an employee can bodily enter and perform assigned work; and has limited or restricted means for entry or exit (for example, tanks, vessels, silos, storage bins, vaults, etc.); and Is not designed for continuous employee occupancy. A confined space is considered a "permit required space" if it has one or more of the following characteristics:
- Contains or has a potential to contain a hazardous atmosphere;
- Contains a material that has the potential for engulfing an entrant;
- Has an internal configuration such that an entrant could be trapped or asphyxiated by inward converging walls or by floor which slopes downward and tapers to a smaller cross section; or
- Contains any other recognized serious safety or health hazard.
The term "permit" is used because the standard requires an employer to issue a written permit to employees before they are allowed to enter a permit required space. The standard goes on to define a hazardous atmosphere as an atmosphere that exposes the employee to the risks of death, incapacitation, impairment of ability to self-rescue, injury, or acute illness from: A flammable gas, vapor, or mist in excess of 10 percent of its lower flammable limit (LFL);
This regulation establishes many requirements for employers who have permit required confined spaces on their premises if they have reason to assign employees to enter these spaces. The portion of this regulation, which is most applicable to rescuers, however, is the paragraph K, Rescue and Emergency Services.
Application to Fire and Rescue Personnel Under paragraph K, Rescue and Emergency Services, a rescue agency is required to provide rescuers the full personal protective equipment (including breathing apparatus) and rescue equipment to perform rescues from permit spaces. The rescuers must also be given training on how to use this equipment; no minimum training hours are specified, however, the training must ensure that rescuers are proficient in their assigned duties.
Each member of the rescue team must practice making a permit required space entry at least once every 12 months in a space that is representative of one, which they may have to enter. Each rescuer must also be trained in basic first aid and CPR with at least one member holding current certifications in each of these. Paragraph K does not require rescuers to complete a permit before entry is made into a confined space for rescue purposes, however a permit would be required to enter the space for training purposes. Additionally, under paragraph K and other sections, the regulation establishes that rescuers must have atmospheric monitoring and ventilation equipment, lifelines and harnesses, a mechanical hoist system, communications equipment, and lighting equipment.
29 CFR § 1910.147: Lock_out/Tag_out Requirements
Overview
The intent of this standard is to prevent the unexpected energization or start up of machines or equipment, or the release of stored energy, which could cause injury to employees. This standard sets forth requirements for the control of hazardous energy or the unexpected start up of equipment. Application to Fire and Rescue Personnel This section mandates rescuers use certain safety measures to prevent the unexpected release energy or start up of equipment. Lock_out/tag_out procedures may be necessary when performing rescues involving heavy industrial equipment, elevators, or electrical rooms. Electricity must be shut down and protected so that reenergizing does not occur while the rescue is being performed. It requires that employers create an employee protection program that defines Lockout and Tag out procedures.
29 CFR § 1910.1030: Occupational Exposure to Bloodborne Pathogen
The intent of this section is to provide for employee protection from exposure to bloodborne pathogens or other potentially infectious materials. Application to Fire and Rescue Personnel This standard requires that rescue agencies provide a comprehensive education and control program for fire and rescue personnel who may be exposed to bloodborne pathogens or infections materials. The program must cover the following topics:
- training for rescuers about the dangers of bloodborne pathogens;
- how to dispose of contaminated materials; disposal processes for sharps, contaminated instruments, and infectious materials;
- documentation of rescuer exposures to infectious materials; and
- post exposure medical evaluations.
For more information, refer to the U.S. Fire Administration publication Guide to Developing and Managing an Emergency Service Infection Control Program, Publication ID:40 FA, Number:FA_112
29 CFR § 1926.650 _ §652: Trench/Collapse Rescue Operations
Overview
This section establishes operational and safety practices for incidents involving trenches. Application to Fire and Rescue Personnel This regulation directly affects rescue operations at trench rescue incidents by requiring the use of proper equipment and techniques to shore up trenches. It prohibits entry into trenches, which are not properly shored to prevent collapse. This standard also specifies that rescuers wear a lifeline into trenches. It also requires that rescue agencies provide training to rescuers about the hazards of trench operations.
29 CFR § 1910.120: Hazardous Materials Operations
Overview
This standard establishes procedures and requirements for emergency response to hazardous materials incidents. It requires: development an emergency response plan and
In the EPA Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, Congress required the EPA to make this standard mandatory for state and local government employees in states that do not have an OSHA state plan (the EPA regulation appears in 40 CFR 311). Therefore, unlike other OSHA standards, the requirements of this standard apply to all firefighters (paid or volunteer) in all states (OSHA and non_OSHA states). This standard also references NFPA standards 471, 472, and 473.
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