The American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) this week announced it has published several new and revised voluntary standards to help employers minimize occupational risks to workers.
“Standards lead organizations big and small in the same direction to achieve safer and healthier workplaces,” said ASSP President Brad Giles, PE, CSP, STS, FASSP, GIOSH, in a release. “They are a cornerstone of a successful business, setting minimum requirements that help maximize operations, increase the bottom line and ultimately save lives.”
New standards recently published
The ASSP published the following new standards:
- ANSI/ASSP/ISO 45003-2021, Occupational Health and Safety Management – Psychological Health and Safety at Work – Guidelines for Managing Psychosocial Risks: Provides guidance for managing psychosocial risk and promoting well-being at work as part of a safety and health management system based on ISO 45001.
- ANSI/ASSP Z359.9-2021, Personal Equipment for Protection Against Falls – Descent Controllers: Sets minimum requirements for the design and use of descent controllers in rope access, rope descent, and evacuation.
- ANSI/ASSP Z459.1-2021, Safety Requirements for Rope Access Systems: Provides fundamental criteria for establishing and evaluating rope access systems for work at height. The best practices are applicable where ropes are suspended from or connected to a structure to protect a worker from falling. Requirements include a two-rope system for rope access, full-body harnesses and autolocking connectors with 3,600-pound gates.
Revised standards recently published
The following standards were revised:
- ANSI/ASSP A10.38-2021, Basic Elements of an Employer’s Program to Provide a Safe and Healthful Work Environment: Outlines minimum elements of a program for protecting employees in construction and demolition.
- ANSI/ASSP A10.47-2021, Work Zone Safety for Roadway Construction: Sets minimum requirements for workers involved in construction, utility work or maintenance on roads, also aiming to prevent crashes in work zones.
- ANSI/ASSP Z359.11-2021, Safety Requirements for Full Body Harnesses: Creates minimum requirements for full-body harnesses commonly used for fall protection, travel restraint and rescue operations.
- ANSI/ASSP Z359.14-2021, Safety Requirements for Self-Retracting Devices for Personal Fall Arrest and Rescue Systems: Establishes minimum requirements for self-retracting devices, including self-retracting lanyards. The devices are used where personal protection is needed to prevent falls from height, such as at a rock-climbing facility. The devices are becoming increasingly popular in the fall protection industry, but must be used properly.
- ANSI/ASSP Z590.3-2021, Prevention Through Design Guidelines for Addressing Occupational Hazards and Risks in Design and Redesign Processes: Offers guidance on reducing or eliminating occupational safety and health hazards in the design process. It explains how to include prevention through design concepts in a safety and health management system. If worksites are designed from the start with safety in mind, fewer injuries will occur.
In addition to implementing safety and health standards, all employers are encouraged to regularly conduct workplace risk assessments, which are effective in combating many safety and health issues across all industries.