Reference no: EM13333192

Smith Roofing Company installs sheet metal roofing on large warehouse structures. This is done by placing a bundle of sheet metal "decking" on the roof, and then taking the top sheet of the bundle and putting it in place while standing on the bundle. They then stand on that sheet and take the next sheet off the bundle and install it, and so on until the roof is complete. The job in question was a single story warehouse with the roof 40 feet off the ground. The workers did not have fall protection or a safety net. An OSHA inspector, this is a non-delegated state, conducting a routine inspection noticed the Able employees going about their job. As a result, Able was cited for a violation of 29 CFR Section 1926.105(a).

Mr. Smith, the owner, goes to your office for advice. He tells you that to put up safety netting would take twice as long as the roofing job alone, and increase the cost by 3 to 4 times. He states that none of the other 10 contractors who bid on the job included the cost of safety netting in their bid proposals. Mr. Smithalso tells you that in all his years (15) of doing this he has never seen safety netting used on a job for a single story building, multistory buildings yes, but not on single story buildings.

What advice do you give him, and why?