New OSHA Crane Operator Rule Takes Effect December 9
OSHA issued a final rule that clarifies certification requirements for crane operators. Under the final rule, employers are required to train, certify/license and evaluate operators to safely perform crane activities. Most requirements in the final rule will become effective on Dec. 9, 2018. Evaluation and documentation requirements will become effective on Feb. 7, 2019.
Key Points of the New Rule
- The new rule removes the requirement that crane operator certifications include the crane’s rated lifting capacity.
- OSHA is making permanent the employer duty to ensure that operators are competent to operate the equipment safely. While certification ensures operators have general knowledge of crane operation, it does not ensure that operators know how to safely run a particular crane for a specific task. The new revisions preserve a requirement that employers assess the ability of their operators to run the cranes they will be using for their specific duties. OSHA does not require certification for operators of cranes with lifting capacities of 2,000 pounds or less.
Operator Certification By Crane Type
Operators now can be certified based on either the crane’s type and capacity or type only, ensuring that more accredited testing organizations are eligible to meet OSHA’s certification program requirements. Employers need to evaluate operators and provide training when needed to ensure that they can safely operate cranes in a variety of circumstances and document successful completion of the evaluations. Employers who have evaluated operators prior to December 9, 2018, will not have to conduct those evaluations again, but will only have to document when those evaluations were completed.
The final rule revises a 2010 requirement that crane operator certification must specify the rated lifting capacity of cranes for which the operator is certified. Compliant certifications that were already issued by type and capacity are still acceptable under the new rule.
Economic Impact of the New Crane Rule
OSHA estimates the annual cost to the industry will be $1,481,000 for the performance of operator competency evaluations, $62,000 for documenting those evaluations and $94,000 for any additional training needed for operators. OSHA’s estimate of the total annual cost of compliance is $1,637,000. The economic impact analysis determined the most significant costs of the changes are associated with requirements to perform the operator competency evaluation, document the evaluations and provide any additional training needed by operators. OSHA estimates employers impacted by this rule employ approximately 117,130 crane operators.
OSHA also expects some cost savings from the changes to the rule. In particular, OSHA estimates a large one-time cost savings of $25,678,000 from dropping the requirement that crane operators be certified by capacity because that change eliminates the need for a very large number of operators to get an additional certification. OSHA also estimates that a small number of ongoing annual certifications due to an operator moving to a higher capacity crane would also no longer be needed, producing an additional annual cost savings of $426,000. These various elements lead to estimated net annual cost savings of $1.7 to $2.4 million.
The agency has concluded that, on average, the impact of costs on employers will be low because most employers are currently providing some degree of operator training and performing operator competency evaluations to comply with the previous 29 CFR 1926.1427(k), and were previously doing so to comply with §§?1926.550, 1926.20(b)(4), and 1926.21(b)(2). Employers who currently provide insufficient training will incur new compliance costs. Although OSHA anticipates that a few employers might incur significant new costs, the agency has concluded that, for purposes of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, the changes to the standard will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.