Legal Issues

By Michael Rubin Avoiding Citations

Before answering that question, remember that OSHA citations may cost your company beyond the penalty amount. Extra costs may include loss of reputation and negative publicity; inability to bid on certain jobs; loss of contracts and clients; increased insurance premiums and / or loss of insurance; risk of future“ repeat” or“ willful” violations( with penalties potentially ten times higher) and negative impact on any related civil litigation.

With all this risk, companies, including and especially crane rental companies, not only should but must take proactive measures to protect themselves. Here are some helpful measures consistent with an effective health and safety program:

Perform a Self-Assessment

The first step to minimize any future

OSHA liability is to focus your attention on what OSHA cares about: safety. Take an in-depth look at your organization and assess how you are doing in terms of workplace safety.

For example, do you have a comprehensive written safety and health program, and is the program effective? In other words, have your safety policies and procedures been communicated to your employees, and are your employees following them? Has there been an increase or decrease in workplace injuries, if any?

Create and Implement an Effective Safety and Health Program

It is critical that you create an effective written safety program, one that addresses( at a minimum) the safety hazards your employees are most likely to face daily. Also important is communicating the program policies and procedures to your employees, providing employees with safety training, conducting workplace inspections to ensure compliance and disciplining employees for any misconduct.

Moreover, everything must be written, documented and records must be maintained. This would include, for example, distributing all work rules to employees in writing, maintaining any sign-in sheets generated in connection with any safety training and maintaining all disciplinary records. Be of the mindset: if it is not written down, it did not happen.

OSHA’ s Safety and Health Programs in Construction( OSHA 3886, published October 2016) provides further guidance on creating an effective safety plan. Crane rental companies can also look at OSHA’ s Compliance Directive for Cranes and Derricks in Construction Standard( CPL 02-01-063, published 2 / 11 / 22). Page five of that 231-page document sets forth key elements of an OSHA inspection of a crane site.

Be Prepared for an Inspection

OSHA inspections are conducted by a compliance safety and health officer( CSHO) and are usually not conducted with any advance warning to the employer.

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May 2026 • www. cranehotline. com