OSHA updates forklift rule to remove provision for lifting personnel
As part of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, Congress authorized OSHA to adopt national consensus standards. On May 29, 1971, when OSHA published a final rule adopting national consensus standards and established federal standards as OSHA's initial occupational safety and health standards for general industry, OSHA stated that the standards of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) "may also contain advisory provisions and recommendations the adoption of which by employers is encouraged, but they are not adopted in Part 1910."
Thus, the standards adopted on May 29, 1971, were intended to include only the mandatory provisions of the relevant ANSI and NFPA standards.
The American National Standard for Powered Industrial Trucks, ANSI B56.1-1969, was the source standard for 29 CFR 1910.178(e) through (p), the relevant paragraphs of OSHA's Powered Industrial Trucks Standard.
Paragraph (m)(12) of 1910.178, as it was published in May 1971 and has appeared since, reads as follows: "Whenever a truck is equipped with vertical only, or vertical and horizontal controls elevatable with the lifting carriage or forks for lifting personnel, the following additional precautions shall be taken for the protection of personnel being elevated." [Emphasis added.] The requirement thus appears as a mandatory provision of OSHA's Powered Industrial Truck Standard.
The corresponding provision in ANSI B56.1-1969 read as follows: "Whenever a truck is equipped with vertical only, or vertical and horizontal travel controls elevatable with the lifting carriage or forks for lifting personnel, the following additional precautions should be taken for the protection of personnel being elevated." [Emphasis added.]
If a provision was not mandatory ("should"), in the source consensus standard, the corresponding OSHA provision that was invalidly adopted as ("shall") mandatory is not enforceable. Consequently, 1910.178(m)(12) is unenforceable by OSHA, and OSHA is removing that provision from the Powered Industrial Trucks Standard.
OSHA notes that this action does not indicate that the underlying hazard addressed by these provisions is not serious. Indeed, if proper equipment, procedures and training are not provided, the lifting of personnel with powered industrial trucks poses hazards likely to cause death or serious injury to employees. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers' (ASME) current standard for powered industrial trucks (ASME B56.1-2000) addresses these hazards.
Under the Voluntary Consensus Standards Project, OSHA has asked various consensus standards organizations to review their standards, compare the latest versions of these standards to the ones currently adopted by OSHA, and to determine which ones are most important for OSHA to update. OSHA is now considering the possibility of initiating rulemaking to revise and update the Powered Industrial Truck Standard.