OSHA 30-Hour Construction Final Exam: Practice Test & Licensing Guide

A framing crew on a commercial job is sheathing a second-floor deck. The unprotected edge of the deck is 7 feet above the ground below. Under the general duty-to-have-fall-protection rule, at what height does fall protection become required for these workers?

Answer: 6 feet or more

29 CFR 1926.501(b)(1) requires employees on a walking/working surface with an unprotected side or edge 6 feet or more above a lower level to be protected by guardrails, safety nets, or personal fall arrest systems. At 7 feet, this crew is covered. The 4-foot figure is the general industry trigger, not construction, and 10 feet is the scaffold trigger in 1926.451(g)(1).

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.501(b)(1)

A roofer's personal fall arrest system must be rigged so that the worker cannot free fall more than a set distance and cannot contact any lower level. What is the maximum permitted free fall distance?

Answer: 6 feet

1926.502(d)(16)(iii) requires a PFAS to be rigged so that an employee can neither free fall more than 6 feet nor contact any lower level. 3.5 feet is the maximum deceleration distance in (d)(16)(iv). 2 feet is the free-fall limit for positioning devices in 1926.502(e)(1).

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.502(d)(16)(iii)

A concrete finisher reports an unguarded rebar hazard to OSHA and is fired two days later. Under Section 11(c) of the OSH Act, how long does he have to file a retaliation complaint?

Answer: 30 days after the retaliation occurs

Section 11(c)(2) of the OSH Act allows an employee who believes he was discharged or discriminated against for safety activity to file a complaint with the Secretary of Labor within thirty days after the violation occurs. 15 working days is the employer's deadline to contest a citation under Section 10(a). Longer deadlines exist under some other whistleblower statutes, but not under 11(c).

Reference: Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, Section 11(c)(2)

A framing crew plugs saws into a temporary power pole. The pole has 120-volt, single-phase, 20-amp receptacles that are not part of the building's permanent wiring. If the employer does not run an assured equipment grounding conductor program, what protection must these receptacles have?

Answer: Ground-fault circuit interrupters (GFCIs)

1926.404(b)(1)(i) requires the employer to use either GFCIs or an assured equipment grounding conductor program. Under 1926.404(b)(1)(ii), all 120-volt, single-phase, 15- and 20-amp receptacle outlets on construction sites that are not part of the permanent wiring and are in use by employees must have approved GFCIs for personnel protection. AFCIs protect against fire from arcing faults, not against shock to personnel.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.404(b)(1)(ii)

A dump truck on an off-highway site has a load that blocks the driver's view to the rear. Under 1926.601, what is required before the truck may back up?

Answer: The truck must have a reverse signal alarm audible above the surrounding noise, or it may back up only when an observer signals that it is safe.

1926.601(b)(4) prohibits using motor vehicle equipment with an obstructed rear view unless the vehicle has a reverse signal alarm audible above the surrounding noise level, or the vehicle backs up only when an observer signals that it is safe. Mirrors, a horn, or a slow speed alone do not meet the rule. Backing vehicles are a leading cause of struck-by deaths in construction.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.601(b)(4)

At the end of the day, an operator parks a bulldozer on the jobsite. According to 1926.600(a)(3)(i), what must be done with the dozer blade when the machine is not in use?

Answer: Fully lower it or block it

1926.600(a)(3)(i) requires bulldozer and scraper blades, end-loader buckets, dump bodies, and similar equipment to be fully lowered or blocked when they are being repaired or are not in use. All controls must be in neutral with the motors stopped and the brakes set, unless the work requires otherwise. A raised blade can drift down or be bumped and crush someone underneath.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.600(a)(3)(i)

A concrete cutting crew is not following Table 1 of the silica standard, so the employer must keep exposures under the permissible exposure limit. What is OSHA's PEL for respirable crystalline silica in construction, as an 8-hour time-weighted average?

Answer: 50 µg/m³

1926.1153(d)(1) sets the PEL for respirable crystalline silica at 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air, calculated as an 8-hour TWA. 25 µg/m³ is the action level, which triggers exposure assessment and also defines the scope of the standard (1926.1153(a)). Employers who fully and properly follow Table 1 for a listed task do not have to do exposure assessment for that task.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.1153(d)(1)

A plumbing crew is digging a sewer lateral trench in soil, not stable rock. At what depth does 1926.652(a)(1) require a protective system against cave-ins, unless a competent person has examined the ground and found no indication of a potential cave-in in a shallower trench?

Answer: 5 feet or more

1926.652(a)(1) requires every employee in an excavation to be protected from cave-ins by an adequate protective system. The exceptions are excavations made entirely in stable rock and excavations less than 5 feet deep where a competent person finds no indication of a potential cave-in. 4 feet is the depth that triggers a means of egress in trenches (4 feet or more, 1926.651(c)(2)) and atmosphere testing where a hazardous atmosphere could exist (more than 4 feet, 1926.651(g)(1)(i)). 20 feet is the depth beyond which sloping and protective systems must be designed by a registered professional engineer.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.652(a)(1)

A siding crew works from a frame scaffold whose platform is 12 feet above the ground. At what height does the scaffold standard require fall protection for employees on a scaffold?

Answer: More than 10 feet

1926.451(g)(1) requires each employee on a scaffold more than 10 feet above a lower level to be protected from falling to that lower level. On most supported scaffolds, that means a guardrail system or a personal fall arrest system (1926.451(g)(1)(vii)). The 6-foot trigger belongs to Subpart M (1926.501(b)(1)), which does not govern work on scaffolds.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.451(g)(1)

Many OSHA construction standards require inspections by a "competent person." Under 1926.32(f), what makes someone a competent person?

Answer: Being capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards and having the authority to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them

1926.32(f) defines a competent person as one who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions that are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them. Both parts are required: the knowledge to spot hazards and the authority to fix them. A degree or an Outreach card does not by itself make someone competent.

Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA Construction Standards), 29 CFR 1926.32(f)