Stairways

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Overview

Oregon OSHA defines a stairway as a series of steps and landings having three or more risers. Most people take stairways (and stairs) for granted until they fall while they are using them. You can make your trip up or down a flight of stairs much safer if you remember to use the handrail. That is why every flight of stairs having four or more risers must have a standard railing or handrail.

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Publications

Checklists
- Stairs and stairways checklist
  Checklist for standard stairs and stairways
  English PDF version 02/25/2019
Fact sheets
- Guardrails, stair rails, and handrails in general industry workplaces
  Summarizes the fall protection requirements for guardrails, stair rails and handrails in general industry workplaces.
  English 03/06/2020
- Reseña de las superficies transitables de trabajo
  Walking-working surfaces: At a glance
  Proporciona una descripción general de los requisitos de las superficies para caminar y trabajar en los lugares de trabajo de la industria en general.
  Spanish 05/20/2024
- Sistemas de barandales, sistemas de barandales para escaleras y pasamanos en lugares de trabajo de la industria en general
  Guardrails, stair rails, and handrails in general industry workplaces
  Resume los requisitos de protección contra caídas para barandales, barandales de escaleras y pasamanos en los lugares de trabajo de la industria en general.
  Spanish 03/06/2020
- Walking-working surfaces: At a glance
  Provides an overview of walking-working surface requirements in general industry workplaces.
  English 04/15/2024
References
- Rules with requirements
  We get many calls and emails from employers asking the same question. It begins: “Which of your rules have requirements for…” You can finish the sentence with words like “recordkeeping,” “employee training,” and “written documents.” To answer those questions, we’ve organized these rules requirements into a filterable, sortable, searchable table.
  English 05/10/2019

Education and training

Rules and rule-related

Final Rules
- Division 2, Subdivision D, Walking-Working Surfaces
  2-2017 Word version
- Division 2, Subdivision E, Means of Egress
  12-2001 Word version
- Division 3, Subdivision T, Demolition
  6-2013 Word version
- Division 3, Subdivision X, Stairways and Ladders
  3-2015 Word version
- Division 4, Subdivision D, Work Surfaces
  9-2006 Word version of Div. 4/D
Program Directives
- Confined Spaces and Permit Required Confined Spaces in General Industry and Construction
  Purpose: This instruction establishes enforcement policy and provides explanation of the standard to ensure uniform enforcement.
  A-062 12/31/2014

Stairways

Overview

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Education and training

Rules and rule-related

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