21.3 Personnel Hoisting Under OSHA 1926.1431

Begin with the permission gate

OSHA 1926.1431 supplements Subpart CC when employees are hoisted. Its general rule prohibits crane/derrick personnel hoisting unless the employer demonstrates that conventional access would be more hazardous or is not possible because of structural design or site conditions. Convenience or a short task is insufficient. Paragraph (a) excludes work covered by Steel Erection Subpart R and routine underground shaft access covered by 1926.800 from that particular prohibition; the exceptions must not be misrepresented as removal of all personnel-hoisting requirements.

Normally employees use a compliant personnel platform. The section identifies specific alternatives for certain drill-shaft, pile-driving, marine-transfer and storage-tank/shaft/chimney operations, with their own cross-referenced conditions. A boatswain's chair is not a general substitute for a platform. Determine the actual applicable operation before selecting equipment.

Setup and equipment criteria

The crane must be uniformly level within 1% of level grade on footing a qualified person determines sufficiently firm and stable. Outriggers or stabilizers must all be extended and locked, with the same extension in accordance with manufacturer procedures and charts. Do not rewrite this as a universal requirement for 100% extension regardless of the manufacturer's chart.

For a suspended personnel platform, the total load—including the loaded platform, hook, load line and rigging—must not exceed 50% of rated capacity at the actual radius and configuration, except during proof testing. Apply the percentage to the correct total-load comparison, not to a net payload capacity after unrelated deductions.

The regulation specifies appropriate aids for the crane type: variable-angle boom indicator and boom-hoist limiting device; luffing-jib indicator and limit where applicable; articulating-crane overload protection; and a boom-length indicator or clear boom marks for telescopic booms. The required automatic two-block prevention has a special pile-driving provision. Required devices must function, and alternative measures are not permitted under paragraph (d)(5)(vii). Direct platform attachment to a luffing jib is prohibited.

Controlled lowering must use the specified system beyond the load-line hoist brake; free fall is prohibited under the referenced provisions. Engage the required brakes and locking features while the occupied platform is stationary in its working position.

Platform and rigging

A qualified person familiar with structural design designs the platform and its attachment/suspension system. The system must allow the platform to remain within 10 degrees of level and minimize tipping from occupant movement. The platform must support its own weight and at least five times maximum intended load without failure, excluding the separately addressed guardrail and fall-arrest anchorages. This is a design requirement, not a fivefold working-load allowance.

The platform needs compliant guardrails, enclosure from toeboard to midrail with the specified maximum 1/2-inch openings where mesh is used, an interior grab rail, adequate upright headroom and appropriate overhead protection when exposed to falling objects. Gates must prevent accidental opening and normally cannot swing outward, with the specified infeasibility exception. Platform weight and rated capacity must be permanently marked.

Divide bridle load evenly through the required connection arrangement. The platform's occupancy and rated load cannot be exceeded. Tools and necessary materials must be secured and evenly distributed. The platform is not used to lift materials without people, apart from the allowed secured trial-lift materials.

Meeting, trial and proof test

Hold the pre-lift meeting before the trial lift at each new work location. The operator, signalperson if used, employees to be hoisted and person responsible for the task attend. Repeat for newly assigned employees. Review the applicable requirements and procedure, rather than assuming an ordinary daily toolbox talk satisfies this specific meeting.

An unoccupied trial lift loaded at least to anticipated lift weight must cover the intended entry and work locations. Perform it immediately before each shift. Repeat after moving/setup changes and after route changes unless the competent person determines the new route presents no new safety factors. The competent person verifies required devices, clearance, accurate radius and the 50% capacity criterion, then inspects equipment, ground/support and platform after the trial. Remove the test weight afterward.

At each jobsite before hoisting employees, and after repair or modification, proof test platform and rigging to 125% of the platform's rated capacity. Lower by controlled lowering, brake and hold suspended for at least five minutes, with evenly distributed test load. The competent person inspects and determines successful completion; defects must be corrected and the test repeated before personnel use. Proof and trial may be combined when both sets of requirements are met.

Immediately before each occupied lift, raise the platform a few inches and have the competent person check security and balance. Confirm rope condition, no twisted multipart lines, centered primary attachment and proper seating after slack. A passed jobsite proof test does not replace this occupied check.

Capacity example

The supplied applicable crane chart permits 10,000 lb. Loaded platform weight is 3,800 lb; hook, applicable load line and rigging total 900 lb. Personnel-hoisting demand is 4,700 lb against the 5,000-lb half-capacity limit. It passes that numerical comparison. A 4,300-lb loaded platform with the same 900 lb would total 5,200 lb and fail. Passing the comparison alone does not satisfy design, trial, proof, weather or access requirements.

Work practices and special limits

Move slowly and maintain direct communication with the signalperson or operator. Do not stand on rails, use a ladder to raise working height or pull the platform out of plumb. Secure it to the structure before entry/exit from an unlanded platform unless the employer demonstrates that securing creates a greater hazard. Confirm it is freely suspended before crane movement after such securing.

When wind at the platform exceeds 20 mph, sustained or gusting, a qualified person determines whether conditions are unsafe; unsafe operation must not begin or must end. This is not an automatic universal 20-mph cutoff, and other dangerous weather also requires assessment. Tag lines are used where necessary. Apply the fall-arrest requirements and the distinct over-water provisions, using approved anchorages rather than arbitrary railing attachments.

Personnel hoisting within 20 feet of power lines up to 350 kV, or within 50 feet above 350 kV, is prohibited except the specified Subpart V work. Ordinary material-lift Table A distances do not override these personnel limits. Travel with personnel is generally prohibited, with narrow track/runway exceptions and conditions; the exception does not apply to rubber-tired equipment, and derricks cannot travel with personnel. Other load-line lifts are also restricted, with specified exceptions. Check the complete section for a special operation rather than improvising from a summary.

Sources: Current OSHA 1926.1431, CCO reference manual personnel-hoisting chapter.