New Directive Aims to Curb Residential Construction Fall Deaths

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has announced a new directive on fall protection, withdrawing one issued in 1995 that allowed residential builders to bypass fall protection requirements, citing high numbers of deaths involving workers in residential construction as the reason for its action.The directive being replaced was intended as a temporary policy and was the result of concerns about the feasibility of fall protection in residential building construction, OSHA reported.“However, there continues to be a high number of fall-related deaths in construction, and indust...