The Occupational Health and Safety Administration issued final revised rules for walking-working surfaces and fall protection standards. The changes will affect 112 million workers at 7 million job sites, the agency says. Among the new rules is the option for employers to choose from a variety of general and personal fall protection systems.
The new rules also resolve inconsistencies between OSHA's general and construction industry standards. According to OSHA, the new rules will allow the industry to avoid at least 29 fatalities and more than 5,800 injuries. The new rules go into effect Jan. 17, 2017.