General Provisions

437-001-0760 Rules for all Workplaces

(1) Employers' Responsibilities.

(a) The employer must see that workers are properly instructed and supervised in the safe operation of any machinery, tools, equipment, process, or practice that they are authorized to use or apply. This rule does not require a supervisor on every part of an operation nor prohibit workers from working alone.

(b) The employer must take all reasonable means to require employees:

(A) To work and act in a safe and healthful manner;

(B) To conduct their work in compliance with all applicable safety and health rules;

(C) To use all means and methods, including but not limited to, ladders, scaffolds, guardrails, machine guards, safety belts, and lifelines, that are necessary to safely accomplish all work where employees are exposed to a hazard; and

(D) Not to remove, displace, damage, destroy, or carry off any safety device, guard, notice, or warning provided for use in any employment or place of employment while such use is required by applicable safety and health rules.

(c) Every employer is responsible for providing the health hazard control measures necessary to protect the employees' health from harmful or hazardous conditions and for maintaining such control measures in good working order and in use.

(d) Every employer must inform the employees regarding the known health hazards to which they are exposed, the measures which have been taken for the prevention and control of such hazards, and the proper methods for utilizing such control measures.

(e) Every agent of the employer is responsible for:

(A) The safe performance of the work under the agent's supervision or control;

(B) The safe conduct of all employees under the agent's supervision or control;

(C) The safety of all employees working under the agent's supervision or control.

(2) Employees' Responsibilities.

(a) Employees must conduct their work in compliance with the safety rules contained in this code.

(b) All injuries must be reported immediately to the person in charge or other responsible representative of the employer.

(c) It is the duty of all workers to make full use of safeguards provided for their protection. It is the worker's responsibility to abide by and perform the following requirements:

(A) A worker must not operate a machine unless guard or method of guarding is in good condition, working order, in place, and operative.

(B) A worker must stop the machine or moving parts and properly tagout or lockout the starting control before oiling, adjusting, or repairing, except when such machine is provided with means of oiling or adjusting that will prevent possibility of hazardous contact with moving parts.

(C) A worker must not remove guards or render methods of guarding inoperative except for the purpose of adjustment, oiling, repair, or the setting up a new job.

(D) Workers must report to their supervisor any guard or method of guarding that is not properly adjusted or not accomplishing its intended function.

(E) Workers must not use their hands or any portion of their bodies to reach between moving parts or to remove jams, hangups, etc. (Use hook, stick, tong, jig, or other accessory.)

(F) Workers must not work under objects being supported that could accidentally fall (such as loads supported by jacks, the raised body of a dump truck, etc.) until such objects are properly blocked or shored.

(G) Workers must not use defective tools or equipment. No tool or piece of equipment should be used for any purpose for which it is not suited, and none should be abused by straining beyond its safe working load.

(d) Workers must not remove, deface, or destroy any warning, danger sign, or barricade, or interfere with any other form of accident prevention device or practice provided which they are using, or which is being used by any other worker.

(e) Workers must not work underneath or over others exposed to a hazard thereby without first notifying them and seeing that proper safeguards or precautions have been taken.

(f) Workers must not work in unprotected, exposed, hazardous areas under floor openings.

(g) Long or unwieldy articles must not be carried or moved unless adequate means of guarding or guiding are provided to prevent injury.

(h) Hazardous conditions or practices observed at any time must be reported as soon as practicable to the person in charge or some other responsible representative of the employer.

(i) Workers observed working in a manner which might cause immediate injury to either themselves or other workers must be warned of the danger.

(j) Before leaving a job, workers must correct, or arrange to give warning of, any condition which might result in injury to others unfamiliar with existing conditions.

(3) Investigations of Injuries.

(a) Each employer must investigate or cause to be investigated every lost time injury that workers suffer in connection with their employment, to determine the means that should be taken to prevent recurrence. The employer must promptly install any safeguard or take any corrective measure indicated or found advisable.

(b) At the request of authorized Department representatives, it is the duty of employers, their superintendents, supervisors, and employees to furnish all pertinent evidence and names of known witnesses to an accident and to give general assistance in producing complete information which might be used in preventing a recurrence of such accident.

At the request of the Department, persons having direct authority must preserve and mark for identification, materials, tools, or equipment necessary to the proper investigation of an accident.

(4) Intoxicating Liquor and Drugs. The use of intoxicating liquor on the job is strictly prohibited. Anyone whose ability to work safely is impaired by alcohol, drugs, or medication must not be allowed on the job while in that condition.

(5) Horseplay. There must be no horseplay, scuffling, practical jokes, or any other activity of a similar nature.

(6) Extraordinary Hazards. When conditions arise that cause unusual or extraordinary hazards to workers, additional means and precautions shall be taken to protect workers or to control hazardous exposure. If the operation cannot be made reasonably safe, regular work must be discontinued while such abnormal conditions exist, or until adequate safety of workers is ensured.

(7) Inspections.

(a) All places of employment must be inspected by a qualified person or persons as often as the type of operation or the character of the equipment requires. Defective equipment or unsafe conditions found by these inspections must be replaced or repaired or remedied promptly.

(b) Wherever required in this safety code, a written and dated report, signed by the person or persons making the inspection, must be kept.

437-001-0765 Safety Committees and Safety Meetings

This rule requires employers to establish and administer a safety committee, or to hold safety meetings, to communicate and evaluate safety and health issues.

Purpose: The purpose of safety committees and safety meetings is to bring workers and management together in a non-adversarial, cooperative effort to promote safety and health. Safety committees and safety meetings will assist you in making continuous improvement to your safety and health programs.

Scope: This rule applies to public or private employers in Oregon subject to Oregon OSHA jurisdiction, except as listed below.

You do not have to comply with this rule if you are:

• The sole owner and only employee of a corporation;
• A member of a board or commission and do not participate in the day-to-day activities of the company. You are not considered an employee for purposes of this rule.
• Engaged in agricultural activities covered by Division 4, Subdivision C.
• Engaged in forest activities covered by Division 7, Subdivisions B and C.

Division 2, Subdivision L OAR 437-002-0182(8) requires employers engaged in fire service activities to establish a separate fire service safety committee or opt for safety meetings if they meet the criteria in the following table.

You can choose a committee or meetings.

(1) You must establish and administer an effective safety committee or hold effective safety meetings as defined by these rules:

Safety Committees

(2) If you have 20 or fewer employees you must have at least 2 members. If you have more than 20 employees you must have at least 4 members.

(3) You must have an equal number of employer-selected members and employee-elected or volunteer members. If both parties agree, the committee may have more employee-elected or volunteer members.

Note: Management can select a supervisor to represent them. Employees can elect a supervisor to represent them.

(4) Your safety committee members must:

• Have a majority agree on a chairperson.
• Serve a minimum of one year, when possible.
• Be compensated at their regular rate of pay.
• Have training in the principles of accident and incident investigations for use in evaluating those events.
• Have training in hazard identification.
• Be provided with meeting minutes.
• Represent major activities of your business.

(5) Your safety committee must meet on company time as follows:

• Quarterly in situations where employees do mostly office work.
• Monthly for all other situations (except the months when quarterly worksite inspections are performed).

(6) You must keep written records of each safety committee meeting for three years that include:

• Names of attendees.
• Meeting date.
• All safety and health issues discussed, including tools, equipment, work environment, and work practice hazards.
• Recommendations for corrective action and a reasonable date by which management agrees to respond.
• Person responsible for follow up on any recommended corrective actions.
• All reports, evaluations, and recommendations made by the committee.

(7) Your safety committee must establish procedures for conducting workplace safety and health inspections. Persons trained in hazard identification must conduct inspections as follows:

(8) In addition to the above requirements, your safety committee must:

• Work with management to establish, amend, or adopt accident investigation procedures that will identify and correct hazards.
• Have a system that allows employees an opportunity to report hazards and safety and health related suggestions.
• Establish procedures for reviewing inspection reports and for making recommendations to management.
• Evaluate all accident and incident investigations and make recommendations for ways to prevent similar events from occurring.
• Make safety committee meeting minutes available for all employees to review.
• Evaluate management's accountability system for safety and health, and recommend improvements. Examples include use of incentives, discipline, and evaluating success in controlling safety and health hazards.

(9) If you have multiple locations, you may choose to have a centralized safety committee. A centralized safety committee must represent the safety and health concerns of all locations and meet the requirements for safety committees. If you rely on a centralized committee, you must also have a written safety and health policy that:

• Represents management commitment to the committee.
• Requires and describes effective employee involvement.
• Describes how the company will hold employees and managers accountable for safety and health.
• Explains specific methods for identifying and correcting safety and health hazards at each location.
• Includes an annual written comprehensive review of the committees' activities to determine effectiveness.

Note: Two or more employers at a single location may combine resources to meet the intent of these rules.

Safety Meetings

(10) Safety meetings must:

• Include all available employees.
• Include at least one employer representative authorized to ensure correction of safety and health issues.
• Be held on company time and attendees paid at their regular rate of pay.

(11) Hold safety meetings with the following frequency if:

(12) Safety meetings must include discussions of:

Safety and health issues

Accident investigations, causes, and the suggested corrective measures.

(13) Employers in construction, utility work, and manufacturing must document, make available to all employees, and keep for three years a written record of each meeting that includes the following:

• Hazards related to tools, equipment, work environment, and unsafe work practices identified and discussed during the meeting.
• The date of the meeting.
• The names of those attending the meeting.

All other employers do not need to keep these records if all employees attend the safety meeting.

(14) If you are a subcontractor on a multi-employer worksite, to meet the intent of (11) through (13), your employees may attend the prime contractor's safety meetings. You may keep the minutes from these meetings as a part of your records to meet the intent of (13). If you choose this option, you must still meet to discuss accidents involving your employees.

(15) Innovation. After you apply, Oregon OSHA may grant approval for safety committees or safety meetings that differ from the rule requirements yet meet the intent of these rules.

(16) Effective Dates. The effective date for compliance with this rule is January 1, 2009. For employers with 10 or fewer employees, other than those in construction, the effective date is September 19, 2009.