Designate a Competent Person
OSHA defines a competent person as:
"One who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them."
Your employer must designate a competent person for certain construction activities that may have caught-in or-between hazards.
Does your employer designate competent persons?
Competent person duties include:
- training workers in heavy equipment, materials handling, excavation, and scaffold erection, moving, and dismantling;
- inspecting scaffolds and excavations, the adjacent areas, and protective systems;
- conducting engineering surveys prior to demolition of a structure (and any adjacent structure where workers may be exposed) to determine the condition of the framing, floors, and walls, and possibility of unplanned collapse; and
- inspecting during demolition to detect hazards resulting from weakened or deteriorated floors, or walls, or loosened material
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
4-7. Who is responsible for training workers in heavy equipment, materials handling, excavation, and scaffold safety?
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