Construction, Maritime, and Farm Workers Owed Specific Legal Protections From Confined Space Dangers
Confined spaces are a part of the job for workers in all types of worksites here in Indiana and Illinois. Anytime a worker is asked to enter a space that hinders or curtails their freedom of movement (including entering or exiting that space), then they are being asked to work in a dangerous situation.
Of course, things can become even more serious in some circumstances. For instance, a maritime welder may be required to move through narrow openings on a vessel; an agricultural workplace can involve a grain elevator; and a construction worker may be asked to work inside a sewer line or crawl into a manhole.
The dangers here? One of the biggest risks of harm in a confined space accident is being trapped in the space itself with the risk of asphyxiation. However, other serious risks include being vulnerable to perishing from inhalation of toxic fumes in a small space; being electrocuted from exposure to a live wire; or losing life or limb from a moving machine part in a cramped environment.
Employer Duty to Protect Against Confined Space Dangers
Since 1993, there has been a specific federal safety regulation designed to protect workers from severe bodily injury in confined space accidents on the job. It was developed after extensive agency evaluation (including the taking of witness testimony) of the hazards involved with working in a confined space. The Permit-Required Confined Spaces Rule, 29 CFR §1910.146, is considered a “performance-oriented standard” and it applies to all industrial workspaces except those involving agriculture, construction, shipyards, and marine terminals.
For these particular industrial worksites with unique confined workspaces, there are other federal regulations that have been created to deal with their particular hazards. They include:
- 29 CFR 1915, 1917, 1918 – Maritime Industry
- 29 CFR 1926, Subpart AA – Construction Industry
- 29 CFR 1910 Subpart B – Shipyard Confined and Enclosed Spaces and Other Dangerous Atmospheres
- 29 CFR 1910 Subpart H – Hazardous Materials
- 29 CFR 1910 Subpart J – General Environmental Controls
- 29 CFR 1910 Subpart Q – Welding, Cutting and Brazing
- 29 CFR 1910 Subpart R – Special Industries.
These are federal regulations that apply to worksites in our nation and create legal duties of care and safety that must be followed by the employer. It can be argued to be a breach of that legal duty which creates legal liability whenever there is a confined space accident on the job where a worker is harmed or killed.
For how these federal regulations work with the state-approved OSHA plans of Indiana and Illinois, read Workplace Safety and OSHA Regulations in Indiana and Illinois.
New 2022 Industrial Standard for Confined Space Work Safety
The years have shown to many safety agencies as well as those advocating for victims of confined space workplace accidents that safety rules and regulations have not been sufficient to keep people safe. Sadly, there have been many instances where preventable accidents have resulted in workers being permanently harmed or even killed in a confined space incident. See, The High Risk of a Deadly Confined Space Accident on the Job.
Recognizing the need for better employer protection on our industrial worksites, the American Society of Safety Professionals (“ASSP”) recently introduced an amended industrial safety standard for the “minimum safety requirements to be followed while entering, exiting and working in confined spaces.”
Their voice will be heard by employers across the globe. This Chicago nonprofit organization has risen over the past century to being internationally recognized as a leader in industrial workplace safety and health standards. The ASSP issues workplace standards in the areas of psychological safety and health, fall protection, construction and demolition operations, and prevention through design.
Confined space safety standards are critical across all industries because first responders may not have the capability to perform a rescue in all circumstances. Proactively implementing a standard such as Z117.1-2022 reduces risks such as oxygen deficiency, which is a leading atmospheric hazard in confined space incidents.
The 2022 Industrial Standard: ANSI/ASSP Z117.1
This new confined space safety standard, ANSI/ASSP Z117.1, defines the minimum amount of safety that an employer should provide workers who are being asked to enter, exit, and/or work in a confined space that is in normal atmospheric conditions.
It includes instructions to employers to help them in determining what is a “confined space” on their particular worksite and whether or not a permit is required for that space under the law.
While this new safety standard is not established in state or federal law, it is a recognized safety measure defined by the safety industry based upon general industrial expertise and insight. If there is a confined space accident where a worker is serious hurt or killed, the employer may well have to answer the question of failing to meet this new 2022 industrial safety standard.
Employers’ Liability After Confined Space Accident on the Job Site
Whenever there is a confined space accident, workers and their loved ones have a legal right to investigate whether or not duties of care and safety have been violated by those responsible for the site’s safety, establishing legal liability for what has occurred.
Not only must the official federal safety regulations be considered, but the industrial safety standards recognized within the worker’s particular employment must be reviewed. Questions must be answered that not only involve obvious breaches of care, like failing to get a confined space permit when one is required, but whether or not recognized dangers, such as meeting the need of first responders to work in a confined space incident (see 2022 ASSP Industrial Standard) were ignored.
Moreover, more than one employer may be held liable for the confined space accident. In construction industry confined space accidents, for instance, OSHA explains that the (1) controlling contractor; (2) host employer; and (3) entry employers all have legally established duties of care to workers entering confined spaces on a construction site.
Workers should be able to depend upon their employers (1) not only to understand the dangers involved in any confined workspace but (2) to make sure everyone is safe from harm while a worker is being asked to perform their job duties in a known hazardous environment.
If there is a serious or fatal accident, then state and federal law may provide justice to these victims and their loved ones. Workers’ compensation, wrongful death, negligence, defective design, product liability, and negligent supervision laws may provide avenues for justice in a confined space accident.
For more on worker injury claims, read:
- Multiple Employers on the Construction Site: Who Is Liable For Construction Worker Accidents?
- Hot Work Industrial Accidents in Indiana and Illinois: Employer’s Duty of Care
- Lone Workers: Employer’s Duty of Care
- How Great is the Danger of Workers Dying in Fatal Work Accidents in 2022?
- Workers’ Compensation and Third-Party Claims for On-the-Job Accidents
- The Two Main Differences Between Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Claims for Accident Victims in Indiana and Illinois.
Here in our part of the country, workers enter confined spaces every day as part of their daily job duties, and rely upon their employers and those in possession and control of the worksite to keep them safe from the known dangers of confined spaces. Unfortunately, there are employers who will fail to keep people safe and tragedies will be the result. Please be careful out there!
