Existing Telecom Safety Standard May Negate Need for OSHA Rule

Before federal workplace safety regulators create new mandates for the telecommunications tower industry, they should consider an existing voluntary safety standard, a panel of federal agency representatives said.

Their report said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration should review the consensus standard to decide whether a new OSHA rule would improve safety. If OSHA wants its own rule, the agency should consider incorporating the consensus standard into the federal regulation, the panel said. OSHA posted the committee’s report Oct. 23.

OSHA’s move to write a rule began in 2013, when deaths among tower workers rose sharply—going from one death in ...