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OSHA Inspecting for Cut-Resistant Footwear As reported previously, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration is undertaking intensive logging operation compliance audits in West Virginia this year. Having been informed that many loggers were being cited for failing to ensure that employees were wearing chain saw protective boots, FRA contacted OSHA to determine whether the advice the agency provided in 1995 is still valid-that traditional, single-layer, heavy-duty logging boots composed of leather or rubber would meet the standard. OSHA says that compliance officers are now insisting that chain saw operators wear logging boots with cut-resistant material sewn-in or attached to the footwear, or boots worn in combination with another cut-resistant product (such as socks made with cut-resistant fabric). OSHA's stricter view of the language in the 1995 regulation seems to reflect the wider availability of cut-resistant logging boots in today's market. This new position differs from the interpretation presented on page 2 of FRA's 1995 publication, The Logger's Guide to the New OSHA Logging Safety Standards (95-A-14). FRA recommends that foot protective devices meet or exceed the cut-resistant performance standards outlined in ASTM F181 Standard Specification for Foot Protection for Chain Saw Users and be certified by Underwriters Laboratory (UL) or other certification organization. Presently, OSHA does not actually require that foot protective devices meet the ASTM performance standard, but our inference is that meeting that standard is a guarantee of satisfying an inspector. Back to "News" Forest Resources Association
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