Employer Responsibilities
All employers engaged in construction work must have a competent person:
- identify any confined spaces in which their workers will be working, and
- determine whether any such spaces are permit spaces.
Competent Person: A competent person is "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 the authority to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them."
If an employer knows that a permit space is present at its worksite, warning signs should be used to inform workers of the location and danger posed by each space. If workers have no work to do in the space, the employer must ensure that they recognize permit space warning signs and stay out.
To ensure worker protection, the confined space standard imposes duties on three employer categories:
- Entry Employer: An entry employer is an employer who decides that an employee it directs will enter a permit space.
- Controlling Contractor: A controlling contractor is the employer with overall responsibility for coordination and control of construction at the worksite.
- Host Employer: A host employer is the employer that owns or manages the property where the construction work is taking place.
Click on the link below to open a table covering the duties of each employer category.
| Employer Category | Employer Responsibilities |
|---|---|
| All Employers | •Identify all confined spaces in which their workers may work and determine whether any are permit spaces. If its workers are supposed to enter permit spaces, the employer is an “entry employer.” • Employers who are not “entry employers” must make sure their workers stay out of any permit spaces present on the site, unless the workers are authorized for entry. |
| Entry Employers | • Protect workers against permit space hazards by complying with the standard. • Inform controlling contractor of the program followed and hazards encountered in permit spaces. |
| Controlling Contractors | • Share information it has about permit space hazards with entry employers and other employers whose
activities may create hazards in the permit space. • Coordinate entry operations when there is more than one entry employer. • Coordinate operations when permit space entry occurs during other activities at the site that might create a hazard in the space. |
| Host Employers | •Share information it has about permit space hazards with the controlling contractor. |
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
11-3. Who has overall responsibility for construction at the worksite?
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