The General Duty Clause (Continued)
Recognized Hazards
OSHA's Field Operations Manual (FOM) lists three ways in which a hazard qualifies as "recognized:"
- Employer recognition: This can be established by evidence of actual employer knowledge of a hazardous condition or practice.
- Industry recognition: A hazard is recognized if the employer's relevant industry is aware of its existence.
- Common sense recognition: If industry or employer recognition of the hazard cannot be established through employer or industry recognition, hazard recognition can still be established if a hazardous condition is so obvious that any reasonable person would have recognized it.
Serious Physical Harm
The General Duty Clause requires the employer to protect employees against hazards that could cause death or serious physical harm. We all know what death is, so we'll briefly discuss what OSHA considers to be serious physical harm. It's the "impairment of the body in which part of the body is made functionally useless or is substantially reduced in efficiency on or off the job."
Impairment may be permanent or temporary, chronic or acute. Injuries involving such impairment would usually require treatment by a medical doctor or other licensed health care professional.
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
4-5. If industry or employer recognition of the hazard cannot be established through employer or industry recognition, hazard recognition can still be established _____.
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