OSHA 501 flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

General Duty Clause

Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act requires employers to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

Recordable injury criteria

A work-related injury or illness is recordable if it results in death, days away, restricted work or transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, or significant diagnosis.

Fatality reporting window

An employer must report a work-related fatality to OSHA within 8 hours of learning of it, using the phone or the online reporting system.

Hospitalization reporting window

In-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye must be reported to OSHA within 24 hours of the employer learning of the event.

Form 300A posting period

The annual summary of work-related injuries and illnesses must be posted in a visible location from February 1 through April 30 of the following year.

Exposure record retention

Employee exposure records must be kept for 30 years, and medical records for the duration of employment plus 30 years, under 29 CFR 1910.1020.

Employee record access

Employers must provide employees or their representatives access to exposure and medical records within 15 working days of a written request.

Inspection priority order

OSHA ranks inspections as imminent danger first, then fatality or catastrophe, then complaints and referrals, then programmed inspections, then follow-ups.

Warrant requirement

OSHA compliance officers may inspect without a warrant if the employer consents; if consent is refused, OSHA must obtain an administrative warrant.

Serious violation

A violation where there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result and the employer knew or should have known of the hazard.

Willful violation

A violation committed with intentional, knowing, or voluntary disregard for the law or plain indifference to employee safety and health.

Repeated violation

A violation of any standard, rule, or order that the employer has previously been cited for and that has become a final order.

Failure to abate

A penalty assessed when an employer fails to correct a cited violation by the required abatement date, accruing daily until corrected.

Noise action level

An 8-hour time-weighted average of 85 dBA triggers a hearing conservation program including monitoring, audiometric testing, hearing protection, and training.

Noise permissible exposure limit

The 8-hour TWA PEL is 90 dBA; exposure above this level requires feasible engineering or administrative controls, with hearing protection as a supplement.

Hearing conservation program elements

Required elements include exposure monitoring, audiometric testing, hearing protection, employee training, and recordkeeping for employees at or above the action level.

Permit-required confined space

A space with limited entry or exit, not designed for continuous occupancy, that contains or may contain a hazardous atmosphere or other serious hazard.

Confined space atmospheric limits

Entry requires oxygen between 19.5 and 23.5 percent, flammable gas below 10 percent of the LFL, and toxic substances below exposure limits.

Confined space attendant duties

The attendant remains outside the space, monitors entrants, maintains an accurate count, summons rescue, and never enters to attempt rescue.

Hazard communication program

A written program covering labeling, safety data sheets, and employee training on chemical hazards in the workplace, required by 29 CFR 1910.1200.

Safety data sheet sections

SDSs follow a 16-section GHS format, covering identification, hazards, composition, first aid, firefighting, handling, exposure controls, and disposal.

Fall protection threshold

General industry requires fall protection for employees exposed to falls of 4 feet or more to a lower level, with specific exceptions for certain activities.

Lockout/tagout scope

29 CFR 1910.147 covers servicing and maintenance where unexpected energization or release of stored energy could injure employees; normal production operations are excluded.

Lockout/tagout periodic inspection

Energy control procedures must be inspected at least annually by an authorized employee other than the one using the procedure, with certification of the inspection.

Machine guarding requirement

Guards must protect operators from rotating parts, nip points, and flying chips, and must not create new hazards such as pinch points or sharp edges.

Bloodborne pathogens exposure control plan

A written plan identifying tasks with exposure risk, methods of compliance, hepatitis B vaccination, post-exposure evaluation, and training, reviewed annually.

Hepatitis B vaccination offer

The vaccine must be offered within 10 working days of initial assignment to employees with occupational exposure, at no cost, after hazard training.

Respiratory protection fit testing

Tight-fitting respirators require fit testing before use and at least annually thereafter, plus medical evaluation and training before the test.

Personal protective equipment training

Employees must be trained on when PPE is necessary, what PPE to use, its limitations, and how to don, adjust, and dispose of it.

Emergency action plan triggers

An emergency action plan is required when standards call for it or when fire or other emergency evacuation is expected, covering routes and accounting.

Hazard assessment for PPE

Employers must assess the workplace to determine whether hazards necessitate PPE, communicate the selection decisions, and certify the assessment in writing.

OSHA injury log retention

OSHA Forms 300 and 301 must be retained for 5 years following the end of the calendar year they cover; the 300A is retained the same period.