January 2014—It’s 2014 and…the crane operator certification requirement as written is set to go into effect in 10 months.
It’s also been over three years since the rule was published and almost eight months since OSHA announced its intention to delay the effective date of the crane operator certification requirements. However, the required Notice of Proposed Rulemaking has still not been published and, until it has, and until the public comments that are expected have been responded to, the federal rule as published in 2010 is the “law of the land.”
The good news is that OSHA appears to have listened to the industry position on one of the issues that have proved contentious. Jim Maddux, Director of the OSHA Directorate of Construction speaking at NCCCO’s 35th Bi-Annual Commission meeting towards the end of last year stated that, “the vast majority of the crane industry thinks that while it is a useful thing to have certification, and it has a really important place, it is probably not enough. Maddux said it was also important to make sure that the employee is “qualified to operate the crane they are operating.”
For additional history on OSHA’s Crane Rule, see NCCCO’s OSHA Crane Rule Resource Center.