common construction safety questions with answers

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## Part 12 General Safety Precautions ## Housekeeping 185 An employer must ensure that a work site is kept clean and free from materials or equipment that could cause workers to slip or trip. ## Lighting 186 (1) An employer must ensure that lighting at a work site is sufficient to enable work to be done safely. 186 (2) An employer must ensure that a light source above a working or walking surface is protected against damage. - 186 (3) An employer must ensure that there is emergency lighting at a work site if workers are in danger if the normal lighting system fails. - 186 (4) Emergency lighting must generate enough light so that workers can - (a) leave the work site safely, - (b) start the necessary emergency shut-down procedures, and - (c) restore normal lighting. ## Pallets and storage racks 187 (1) An employer must ensure that pallets used to transport or store materials or containers are loaded, moved, stacked, arranged and stored in a manner that does not create a danger to workers. - 187 (2) An employer must ensure that racks used to store materials or equipment - (a) are designed, constructed and maintained to support the load placed on them, and - (b) are placed on firm foundations that can support the load. - 187 (3) A worker must report any damage to a storage rack to an employer as quickly as practicable. - 187 (4) The employer and the workers at a work site must take all reasonable steps to prevent storage racks from being damaged to the extent that their integrity as structures is compromised. ## Placement of roofing materials - 187.1 (1) An employer must ensure that supplies and roofing materials stored on the roof of a residential building under construction are located not less than 2 metres from a roof edge. - 187.1 (2) An employer must ensure that the weight of supplies and roofing materials referred to in subsection (1) is uniformly distributed.

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Division 2 - (7) Approach distances to exposed energized overhead power lines and parts. The employer shall ensure that no employee approaches or takes any conductive object closer to any electrically energized overhead power lines and parts than prescribed in Table R-2, unless: - (i) The employee is insulated or guarded from the energized parts (insulating gloves rated for the voltage involved shall be considered adequate insulation), or - (ii) The energized parts are insulated or guarded from the employee and any other conductive object at a different potential, or - (iii) The power conductors and equipment are deenergized and grounded. - (8) Illumination of field work. Whenever natural light is insufficient to adequately illuminate the work site, artificial illumination shall be provided to enable the employee to perform the work safely. Table R 2 - Approach Distances to Exposed Energized Overhead Power Lines and Parts

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## 29 CFR 1926 (OSHA) from falling by a guardrail system, safety net system, or personal fall arrest system. If a guardrail system is chosen to provide the fall protection, and a controlled access zone has already been established for leading edge work, the control line may be used in lieu of a guardrail along the edge that parallels the leading edge. - (3) Hoist areas. Each employee in a hoist area shall be protected from falling 6 feet (1.8 m) or more to lower levels by guardrail systems or personal fall arrest systems. If guardrail systems, [or chain, gate, or guardrail] or portions thereof, are removed to facilitate the hoisting operation (e.g., during landing of materials), and an employee must lean through the access opening or out over the edge of the access opening (to receive or guide equipment and materials, for example), that employee shall be protected from fall hazards by a personal fall arrest system. - (4) Holes. (i) Each employee on walking/working surfaces shall be protected from falling through holes (including skylights) more than 6 feet (1.8 m) above lower levels, by personal fall arrest systems, covers, or guardrail systems erected around such holes. - (ii) Each employee on a walking/working surface shall be protected from tripping in or stepping into or through holes (including skylights) by covers. - (iii) Each employee on a walking/working surface shall be protected from objects falling through holes (including skylights) by covers. - (5) Formwork and reinforcing steel. Each employee on the face of formwork or reinforcing steel shall be protected from falling 6 feet (1.8 m) or more to lower levels by personal fall arrest systems, safety net systems, or positioning device systems. - (6) Ramps, runways, and other walkways. Each employee on ramps, runways, and other walkways shall be protected from falling 6 feet (1.8 m) or more to lower levels by guardrail systems. - (7) Excavations. (i) Each employee at the edge of an excavation 6 feet (1.8 …

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## Restraining hoses and piping - 188 (1) An employer must ensure that a hose or piping and its connections operating under pressure are restrained if workers could be injured by its movement if it fails or if it is disconnected. - 188 (2) Despite subsection (1), if a hose or piping and its connections operating at a working pressure of 2000 kilopascals or more cannot be restrained, in order to prevent a failure that could injure workers, an employer must ensure that the hose or piping and its connections are designed, installed, used, inspected and maintained - (a) in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications, or - (b) in accordance with specifications certified by a professional engineer. - 188 (3) Subsection (1) does not apply to properly maintained fire hoses used by competent workers. ## Securing equipment and materials - 189 If a worker may be injured if equipment or material is dislodged, moved, spilled or damaged, both the employer and the worker must take all reasonable steps to ensure the equipment or material is contained, restrained or protected to eliminate the potential danger. ## Skeleton structures - 190 (1) An employer must ensure that the erection drawings and procedures for a project that includes connecting the structural parts of a skeleton structure are prepared and certified by a professional engineer. - 190 (2) The erection drawings and procedures referred to in subsection (1) must - (a) show the sequence in which the structure is to be erected, - (b) show the horizontal and vertical placement of base structures and footings, and - (c) ensure that the structure is stable during assembly. - 190 (3) If the erection procedures referred to in subsection (1) must be changed because of site conditions or unanticipated loads on the skeleton structure, the employer must ensure that the changed, additional or alternative procedures are prepared and certified by a professional engineer before they are implemented. - 190 (4) An employer mus…