Coronavirus Could Affect OSHA Compliance on Home Building Sites
The effects of the COVID-19 illness associated with a new coronavirus have already proven to be extraordinarily broad, ranging from the obvious strain on countries' healthcare systems to a global economic slowdown spurred by social distancing and reduced commerce. Those impacts might be felt for months to come.
But NAHB has identified at least two areas of concern for home builders in the short term, both related to compliance with OSHA standards: The availability of N95 respirators for those working with respirable silica dust and OSHA reporting standards on injuries and illnesses in the workplace.
Shortage of N95 Masks
N95 filtering facepiece respirators—a staple in construction industry—may be used to protect workers from respiratory hazards such as silica dust from cutting, drilling, or jackhammering concrete, respirable particles when sanding various building materials, fiberglass particles while installing or removing insulation, or lead dust when impacting surfaces coated with lead-based paint.
N95 masks are popular with healthcare workers battling on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. Vice President Mike Pence asked the construction industry on March 17 to donate N95 masks to healthcare workers, so home builders and contractors should expect shortages of these respirators in the coming weeks or longer. What can construction employers do to limit the need for respirator use? In short, keep the dust down by using engineering and work practice controls, specifically through the use of water delivery and dust collection systems and by limiting exposure time.
NIOSH, OSHA and others have guidance that includes vacuum dust collection system, using wet-cutting techniques and minimizing the number of workers exposed to the hazard. Here are some resources to help construction companies reduce exposure to dust on job sites that reference these techniques for specific tasks:
- Using handheld saws
- Drywall sanding
- Cutting fiber cement siding
- Using handheld grinders
- Controlling lead dust exposures