Fall protection (Subpart M)

This module has two parts under 29 CFR 1926 Subpart M. Fall-hazard areas are the places people work at height, each evaluated against the 6-ft construction trigger (1926.501(b)(1)). Personal fall-arrest equipment is the harnesses, lanyards, SRLs, and anchors inspected periodically by a competent person (and by the user before each use). An unprotected exposure — or a defective item — is the danger the program surfaces.

Fall-hazard areas (Subpart M program)

Each place people work at height, evaluated against the 6-ft trigger.

1. Under Register a fall-hazard area, fill in Site, Location, Work at height, and Height (ft) — protection is required at or above 6 ft (1926.501(b)(1)).
2. Pick the Protection system: None, Guardrail, Safety net, Personal fall arrest, Positioning device, Warning line, Controlled access zone, or Hole cover.
3. Tick Anchorage adequate (5,000 lb/worker or engineered 2:1, 1926.502(d)(15)) and Prompt-rescue plan in place (1926.502(d)(20)) where they apply, name the Competent person, and set Last assessed on.
4. Click Register area. It joins the top table with its gaps and next assessment date.

An exposure at or above 6 ft with system None is high-risk — the row turns red and reads "none — unprotected". Use Reassess… on a row to update the protection system, anchorage, and rescue plan; saving resets the annual review clock. Decommission retires an area (history stays), and CAPA opens a corrective action (High priority when the area is unprotected). Export hazard register CSV downloads the register (api/fall-hazard-areas/register.csv).

Register equipment

1. Under Register equipment, choose the site and enter the asset tag.
2. Assign the item to a worker from the roster and pick the type (full-body harness, lanyard, self-retracting lifeline, anchor point, connector, rope grab).
3. Click Register. The item joins the list with its next inspection due date — competent-person inspections run on a 180-day (semi-annual) cadence.

Record an inspection

1. Filter by site if needed, then find the item in the list.
2. Click Inspect ✓ to pass it, or Fail/RFS to remove it from service.
3. A failed item shows removed with the noted defect. When replaced or repaired, click Return to put it back in service.
4. Click Decommission when gear is scrapped or permanently retired — it drops out of every attention count while its history stays. That isn't reversible; use Fail/RFS for a temporary removal.

Export equipment CSV downloads the 1926.502(d)(21) equipment register with inspection dates and service status (api/fall-protection/register.csv).

What happens automatically

• Area rows turn red when an exposure is unprotected and yellow when an assessment is coming due; equipment rows turn yellow when an inspection is coming due and red when the item is removed from service or overdue.
• An unprotected exposure ≥6 ft escalates to the Safety Team ("Unprotected fall exposure: {location}"); a protected-but-overdue area escalates as "Fall-hazard assessment overdue".
• An item removed from service now escalates ("Fall-protection removed from service: {tag}") and stays escalated until it is returned or decommissioned; an in-service item whose competent-person inspection goes overdue escalates to the assigned worker (or the Safety Team when unassigned).
• For an item or area needing attention, click CAPA to open a corrective action; the row then links to that CAPA.

Tip: assigning each item to a worker means the person who inspects it before every use always knows which harness is theirs — and overdue-inspection notices go straight to them.

Related

• Scaffolds — Competent-person tag inspections at height
• Ladders & walking surfaces — Ladders and platforms for elevated work
• CAPA (corrective & preventive actions) — Correct uncontrolled fall hazards to closure