OSHA holds PPE proposal hearing

Oct. 10, 2008
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) held an informal public hearing October 6 on a proposed rule involving personal protective equipment (PPE) and related training

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) held an informal public hearing October 6 on a proposed rule involving personal protective equipment (PPE) and related training after it issued the proposal August 19, according to information in the Federal Register.

OSHA said it will make available the comments presented at the hearing and other comments received. As reported in the September Tank Wash Monthly, the agency is amending its PPE regulations to clarify that noncompliance may expose an employer to liability on a per-employee basis, according to information published in the Federal Register August 19. The amendments refer to changes to the language of some existing respirator and training requirements. OSHA issued the proposed rule (29 CFR Parts 1910, 1915, 1917, 1918 and 1926) after it was determined that differences in wording among the various PPE and training provisions in OSHA safety and health standards affect the agency's ability to treat an employer's failure to provide PPE or training to each covered employee as a separate violation. The amendments add no new compliance obligations, according to the information. Employers are not required to provide any new type of PPE or training, to provide PPE or training to any employee not already covered by the existing requirements, or to provide PPE or training in a different manner than that already required.

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