Worker Safety Standards — OSHA & MSHA

Part 1926 contains the federal safety and health standards that apply to construction work: fall protection, scaffolds, excavations and trenching, ladders and stairways, cranes and derricks, electrical safety, personal protective equipment, steel erection, demolition, and more. These are the regulations OSHA compliance officers enforce on construction sites, organized into 28 subparts. The full text of all 291 sections plus the subpart appendices (soil classification, sloping and benching tables, scaffold specifications, fall protection systems, crane hand signals) is browsable and searchable on BuildSpec.

Part 1910 is the general industry standard, and it reaches onto construction sites more often than contractors expect: hazard communication (1910.1200), lockout/tagout (1910.147), respiratory protection (1910.134), powered industrial trucks (1910.178), permit-required confined spaces (1910.146), walking-working surfaces (Subpart D), electrical (Subpart S) and the substance-specific standards in Subpart Z, including silica (1910.1053). Part 1926 incorporates many of these by reference. The full text of every section and appendix is browsable and searchable on BuildSpec.

Part 1904 is the recordkeeping rule: which employers must keep the OSHA 300 Log, 300A annual summary and 301 incident report, what counts as a recordable injury or illness, the 8-hour fatality and 24-hour in-patient hospitalization, amputation and eye-loss reporting deadlines (1904.39), annual electronic submission requirements, and employee access to records. The partially exempt industry list is carried as an appendix.

Part 1903 governs how OSHA enforces its standards: the posting requirement, authority for workplace entry and inspection, advance notice, the opening conference and walkaround (1903.8), employee representation, imminent danger procedures, citations, proposed penalties, abatement verification, and informal conferences. It is the procedural rule behind every OSHA inspection of a construction site.

Part 46 is the training rule for surface aggregate operations — sand and gravel pits, crushed stone quarries and surface limestone mines — and it applies to contractors and truck drivers who work on mine property, not just mine employees. It sets out the written training plan, 24-hour new miner training, newly hired experienced miner training, task training, the 8-hour annual refresher, site-specific hazard awareness training for visitors and contractors, and the training records (Form 5000-23 or equivalent) an operator must keep.

Part 56 is the operating safety standard for surface metal and nonmetal mines, which includes every sand and gravel pit, crushed stone quarry and aggregate plant a contractor hauls from or works in. Its subparts cover ground control, fire prevention, air quality and physical agents, explosives, drilling, loading and haulage (Subpart H), electricity, compressed air and boilers, machinery and equipment (Subpart M — guarding, inspection, mobile equipment), personal protection, materials storage, illumination, safety programs, and the Subpart T requirements for miner safety and health. Standards are cited on MSHA citations by section number, e.g. 56.14100.

Part 57 is the operating safety standard for underground metal and nonmetal mines and applies to contractors performing underground work at those operations. It mirrors the structure of Part 56 and adds the underground-specific subparts: ground control, ventilation (Subpart D), fire prevention and control underground, explosives and blasting underground, hoisting (Subpart R), escapeways and refuges, and the requirements for diesel-powered equipment in underground metal and nonmetal mines.

Part 48 is the training rule for every mine not covered by Part 46 — underground mines (Subpart A) and surface mines other than aggregate operations (Subpart B), including coal. It requires an MSHA-approved training plan, 40 hours of new miner training for underground work (24 for surface), experienced miner training, task training, annual refresher training and hazard training for contractors and visitors, with training conducted by an MSHA-approved instructor.

Part 47 is MSHA's hazard communication standard for mines: the written HazCom program, hazard determination, container labeling, safety data sheets, miner training and access to information, and trade-secret provisions. It parallels OSHA 1910.1200 but is written for mine operators and the independent contractors they bring on site.

Part 50 is MSHA's reporting rule: the 15-minute immediate notification requirement for accidents (50.10), what counts as an accident, injury or occupational illness, preservation of the accident scene, the Form 7000-1 report due within ten working days, quarterly Form 7000-2 employment and production reports, and the records an operator and independent contractor must keep. It is the mining counterpart of OSHA Part 1904.

Part 62 is MSHA's noise rule for all mines: the 85 dBA action level and 90 dBA permissible exposure limit as 8-hour time-weighted averages, the 115 dBA ceiling, exposure monitoring, the hearing conservation program, audiometric testing, hearing protectors, engineering and administrative controls, training and records. The appendix carries the reference tables for exposure calculation.

Part 100 sets how MSHA calculates civil penalties for citations and orders: the point system for operator size, violation history, negligence, gravity (likelihood and severity), good faith abatement, the minimum penalties for specific violation types, special assessments, and the procedures for contesting a proposed penalty. Contractors receive citations and penalties in their own name under this part.