Hazards: Fall through an uncovered hole or skylight · Cover kicked or blown out of place · Stepping into a small hole and breaking a leg · Tools and material dropping through a hole onto workers below
Why it matters
Falls to a lower level killed 397 construction workers in 2022, 36.4% of all deaths in the industry (CPWR Data Bulletin, July 2024, from BLS CFOI). Holes are the version nobody sees coming, because the hazard is behind you and looks like floor. On June 18, 2024, a laborer with downtime before his last core drill of the day leaned against a raised domed skylight. It gave way. His hard hat struck the dome and came off as he fell, so he hit the lower level bare-headed, and the fall was fatal (OSHA Accident Summary Nr 167651.015). He was resting.
Key points
- Two inches is a hole. 1926.500(b): a gap or void 2 in or more in its least dimension. That core hole you drilled this morning qualifies.
- Three separate duties, not one. 1926.501(b)(4): protection from falling through above 6 ft, from stepping into at any height, and from objects falling through onto the people below.
- Twice the load. 1926.502(i)(2): at least twice the weight of employees, equipment and materials that could be on it at once — and in a roadway or aisle, twice the axle load of the biggest vehicle crossing it, (i)(1).
- Secured, not laid down. (i)(3): fixed against displacement by wind, equipment or employees. Screw it, cleat it, block it.
- Marked HOLE or COVER, or color coded. (i)(4). Unmarked plywood on a slab reads as scrap and gets carried off by the next trade.
- A skylight dome is not a cover. It is the hole. Screen it, cover it, rail it or tie off — and never lean, sit or set material on one.
- You cut it, you cover it. The hole belongs to whoever opened it, until it is covered and marked. Not to the next shift, not to the GC.
- Lift a cover, you own the opening. Guard it, work it, put it back and re-secure it before you walk away — even for a coffee.
Do / Don't
Do
- Cut covers oversize, screw them down and paint HOLE on them.
- Cover the hole before you put the saw away.
- Guard the opening while the cover is off, every time.
- Report an unmarked or loose cover the moment you see it.
Don't
- Lay plywood over an opening and walk away.
- Stand, sit, lean on or stack material on a skylight.
- Assume a cover you did not fix is strong enough to walk on.
- Move a marked cover without telling anyone.
Quick site check
- Count the openings on this level: is every one covered, secured and marked?
- Try to slide each cover with your boot — does it move?
- Any skylight up there without a screen, a rail or a tie-off point near it?
Discussion — ask the crew
- How many holes are open on this floor right now, and who made each one?
- What are our covers made of, and would any of them hold twice a loaded cart?
- Which covers here are just a sheet of plywood lying loose?
- Who covers the hole when the person who cut it goes home?
Refs: 29 CFR 1926.501(b)(4) — Holes: falling through, stepping into, and objects falling through, including skylights · 29 CFR 1926.502(i) — Covers: twice the load, secured against displacement, color coded or marked HOLE or COVER · 29 CFR 1926.500(b) — Definition of "hole": a gap or void 2 inches or more in its least dimension · OSHA Accident Search — Summary Nr 167651.015, 06/18/2024 · CPWR Data Bulletin, July 2024 — Fatal Injury Trends in Construction (BLS CFOI)Sign-in sheet included in the printed version