Slips, trips and falls are a major cause of workplace accidents. OSHA standards require guardrails, covers, or other fall protection for floor openings, holes, drop-offs, excavations, and other hazards. Employers must provide fall protection training and ensure fall protection systems are in place before any work begins that exposes employees to fall hazards from heights over 4 feet. Proper use of guardrails, safety nets, personal fall arrest systems, and safe work practices can help prevent falls.

1. Walking-Working Surfaces and
Fall Protection Training
Subpart D

2. 2
Introduction
 Slips, trips and falls cause:
 the majority of general industry accidents
 15 percent of all accidental deaths
 more fatalities than all other causes but
motor vehicles
 OSHA’s standards for walking and
working surfaces apply to all permanent
places of employment, except where
only domestic, mining, or agricultural
work is performed

3. 3
General Requirements
Housekeeping
 Workplaces must be
kept clean, orderly,
and sanitary
 Workroom floors must
be maintained as clean
and dry as possible

4. 4
General Requirements
Aisles and Passageways
 Keep clear and move obstructions that
could create a hazard
 Mark permanent aisles and passageways
 Aisles must be sufficiently wide where
mechanical handling equipment is used
 Never block aisles, exit routes, doorways,
and access to emergency equipment (fire
extinguishers, emergency
eyewash/showers, simplex fire control
stations, etc) by materials or equipment
(i.e. ladders).
 Never store materials or equipment in exit
passageways or stairwells

5. 5
General Requirements
Covers and Guardrails
Provide covers and/or
guardrails to protect
workers from the hazards
of open pits, tanks, vats,
ditches, and the like.

6. 6
General Requirements
Floor Loading Protection
 Load ratings must be
marked on plates and
be conspicuously
posted
 Do not exceed the
load rating limit

7. 7
Floor Opening
An opening measuring 12 inches or more in its least
dimension in a floor, platform, pavement, or yard, through
which persons may fall.
 Always guard temporary floor
holes or openings to protect
persons from accidentally walking
or falling into the hole.
 These situations can be protected
by the use of standard guardrail
barrier systems or secured
coverings with the word “Floor
Hole/ Opening” clearly marked, per
OSHA regulations

8. 8
Guarding Floor Openings
Definitions
 Standard railing. Consists of
top rail, mid rail, and posts.
Height from the upper surface
of top rail to floor level is 42
inches. Mid rail height is 21
inches.
 Standard toeboard. 4 inches
high, with not more than ¼-inch
clearance above the floor.

9. 9
Stairway Floor Openings
Must be guarded by a standard railing on
all exposed sides (except at entrance).

10. 10
Ladderway Floor Openings
 Guard with a standard
railing with toeboard on
all exposed sides (except
entrance)
 Guard the passage
through the railing with a
swinging gate or offset it
to prevent someone from
walking into the opening

11. 11
Floor Hole
 An opening measuring less than 12 in.
but more than 1 in. in its least dimension,
in a floor, platform, pavement or yard,
through which materials but not persons
may fall
 Every floor hole into which persons can
accidentally walk must be guarded by
either:
 standard railing with toeboard
 cover

12. 12
Wall Openings
 Opening at least 30 in.
high and 18 in. wide, in a
wall or partition, through
which persons may fall
 Wall openings from
which there is a drop of
more than 4 feet must be
guarded

13. 13
Open-Sided Floors and Platforms
 Open-sided floors or platforms 4
feet or more above adjacent floor
or ground level must be guarded
by a standard railing (or
equivalent) on all open sides,
except where there is an entrance
to a ramp, stairway, or fixed ladder
 A toeboard is required when,
beneath the open sides:
 persons can pass,
 there is moving machinery, or
 there is equipment with which falling
materials could create a hazard
Unguarded Platform

14. 14
Open-Sided Floors, Walkways,
Platforms, and Runways
Regardless of height, a standard
railing and toeboard must be used
to guard:
- open-sided floors
- walkways
- platforms, or
- runways
above or adjacent to dangerous
equipment, pickling or galvanizing
tanks, degreasing units, and
similar hazards.

15. 15
Stairways
Flights of stairs with four
or more risers must have
standard stair railings or
handrails.

16. 16
Fixed Industrial Stairs
 Treads must be slip
resistant with uniform
rise height and tread
width
 Must be able to carry 5
times expected load;
minimum of 1000
pounds
 Minimum width of 22
inches
Violation here – several
steps bent and damaged

17. 17
Portable Ladders
 Ladders used to gain access to a roof
or other area must extend at least 3
feet above the point of support
 Withdraw defective ladders from
service and tag or mark "Dangerous,
Do Not Use“
 Never use ladders in a horizontal
position as scaffolds or work platforms
 Never use metal ladders near
electrical equipment

18. 18
Use at angle where
the horizontal
distance from the top
support to the foot of
the ladder is ¼ the
working length of the
ladder (length along
ladder between the
foot and top support).
Ladder Angle
Portable Rung and Cleat Ladders

19. 19
Fixed Ladders
 Permanently attached to a
structure, building or equipment
 Cages or wells required if longer
than 20 ft. to a maximum
unbroken length of 30 ft.
 Ladder safety devices may be
used on tower, water tank and
chimney ladders over 20 ft. in
unbroken length instead of cage
protection

20. 20
Scaffolding
General Requirements
 Must be capable of supporting four
times the maximum intended load
 Do not alter or move while in use
 Protect workers on scaffolds from
overhead hazards
 If higher than 10 ft., use guardrails,
midrails and toeboards
 Use wire mesh between the
toeboard and guardrail if people work
or pass underneath
 Must be equipped with access ladder
or equivalent

21. 21
 Comply with all
posted
instructions such
as caution,
warning, and
restricted area
signs
CAUTION

22. 22
 Do not cross any barriers
and barricades such as
portable yellow
barricades, red danger or
yellow caution tape, or
similar barriers for any
reason unless given
proper authorization by
those performing the
work inside of the
restricted area.

23. 23
 Follow instructions and
policies
 Perform pre-use inspection
 Know the equipment’s
capabilities and limitations
 Follow safe work practices
Preventing Problems:
Employee Responsibilities

24. 24
Fall Protection
Employers must provide fall protection training
•How to recognize hazards
•How to minimize hazards
•Fall hazards
• Fall protection systems
• Use of fall protection devices

25. 25
Falls are the leading cause of deaths in the
construction industry.
Most fatalities occur when employees fall from open-
sided floors and through floor openings.
Falls from as little as 4 to 6 feet can cause serious
lost-time accidents and sometimes death.
Open-sided floors and platforms 4 feet or more in
height must be guarded.
Falls

26. 26
Personal Fall
Arrest System
(PFAS)
Guardrails
Safety Net
Fall Protection Options

27. 27
Fall protection systems and work practices
must be in place before you start work.
Lanyards and PFAS in use
Fall Protection Planning

28. 28
 Top rails between 39 and 45 inches tall
 Toeboards at least 3 1/2 inches high
Top Rail
Mid- Rail
Toeboard
Guardrails

29. 29
Personal Fall Arrest Systems
• You must be trained how to properly use PFAS.
PFAS = anchorage, lifeline and body harness.

30. 30
Must be independent of
any platform anchorage
and capable of
supporting at least 5,000
lbs. per worker
Safety Line Anchorages

31. 31
Place as close as possible, but no more than 30 feet
below where employees work
Safety Nets

32. 32
Guard ramps, runways, and other walkways
Fall protection is needed:
Walkways and ramps,

33. 33
Unprotected edge
Unprotected sides & edges,
Unprotected sides and edges must have
guardrails or equivalent

34. 34
Sides & Edges - Improper Guarding
This 1/4" nylon rope alone is not a proper
way to guard this open floor

35. 35
• Cover completely and securely
• If no cover, can guard with a guardrail
Floor Holes
Improperly
Covered

36. 36
Guard excavations
more than 6 feet deep
when they are not
readily seen because
of plant growth or
other visual barriers
Excavations
In addition to needing
guarding, this
excavation is not
properly shored

37. 37
If you work near wall openings 4 feet or more above
lower levels you must be protected from falling
Wall opening
Wall Openings

38. 38
Good Work Practices
 Perform work at ground level if
possible
Example: building prefab roofs on the
ground and lifting into place with a crane
 Tether or restrain workers so they
can't reach the edge
 Designate and use safety monitors
(This is less desirable of all the
systems)
 Use conventional fall protection