A highly speculated and heavily discussed topic was made official on November 9, 2017, as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officially delayed its deadline, by one year, for employers to ensure that crane operators are certified to November 10, 2018. The full OSHA release can be found here.
The official delay is announced the day before the rule was scheduled to take effect. The November 10, 2017 deadline marked the second scheduled enforcement date, following previously delayed target in 2014. OSHA determined that the one year delay is necessary to "...provide sufficient time for OSHA to complete a related rulemaking to address issues with its existing Cranes and Derricks in Construction standard (29 CFR part 1926, sub part CC, referred to as 'the crane standard')".
The November 9, 2017 ruling goes on to conclude, "...that delaying the effective date of this extension rulemaking beyond November 9, 2017, would be contrary to the public interest and would significantly disrupt the construction industry. If the extension does not go into effect on November 9, 2017, the crane operator certification requirements in the 2010 crane standard would go into effect, and the employer duty in the crane standard to ensure crane operator competency would end."
Events leading up to the official November 9th delay included a June 20, 2017 Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) teleconference where the one year moratorium was first proposed. The June 20 meeting included:
The ACCSH is an advisory group formed in congruence with what is commonly known as the “Construction Safety Act”. The purpose of the committee is to advise OSHA’s Assistant Secretary when it comes to establishing construction standards and policies of construction which involve federal bodies. Per 29 CFR 1912.3, ACCSH is made up of fifteen members, and meet for one to two days, two to six times per year:
In a statement submitted to request time to address the June 20 ACCSH meeting, National Commission for the Certification of Crane Operators (NCCCO) CEO Graham Brent, noted, “NCCCO understands that the extension to the enforcement date that OSHA seeks would allow time for the Proposed Rule that OSHA has reportedly completed—but that has not yet been published—to complete its journey through the regulatory review process and to be published in the Federal Register for public review and comment. This Proposed Rule, it is understood, would clarify the role of certification in employers’ efforts to ensure their employees are qualified, and remove the requirement that crane operators be certified by capacity as well as by type of crane.”
The OSHA release is available via the Federal Register here.
General information on Cranes & Derricks in Construction from OHSA is available here.
Contact an ITI Training Solutions Advisor if you have any specific questions about the OSHA’s Final Crane Rule and how it can affect your organization by calling 800.727.6355 or via email at info@iti.com. You can view ITI Crane Training Options Here.