Fall protection regulations can be tricky. Depending on what industry you are in, what task you are performing, or what piece of equipment you are using, your requirement to have and utilize fall protection can be anywhere from 0’ to 30’. That’s a big difference without even counting all the various requirements at heights in between. So, how are you to know when you need fall protection?
The simplest answer is, absent the presence of equipment, machinery, or some substance you can fall into, if you are working more than 4’ above a lower level and do not have some type of fall protection, you MAY be in violation. If you are not 100% sure if you are in violation or not, you either need to do some research or reach out to somebody who does know the answer. Simply proceeding with your work because you weren’t sure of the specifics, is not acceptable.
