OSHA 10 — Construction

Exam blueprint

Sourced from OSHA Outreach Training Program 10-Hour Construction Procedures (Revised 04-01-2024)

• Introduction to OSHA20%
• Focus Four — Falls15%
• Focus Four — Electrocution15%
• Focus Four — Caught-In/Between5%
• Focus Four — Struck-By15%
• Personal Protective Equipment10%
• Health Hazards in Construction10%
• Electives (employer/instructor choice)10%

1. 01Introduction to OSHA

   ~60min

   OSHA's mission, what your rights as a worker are, what your employer must do, and how to get help when you need it. Two of the ten mandatory hours.

   • OSHA mission and creation

     The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 created OSHA to ensure safe and healthful working conditions. OSHA covers most private-sector employers and their workers, plus some public-sector workers, in all 50 states either directly or through an OSHA-approved State Plan. Construction workers are covered by 29 CFR Part 1926, the Construction Industry standards.

     Reference: 29 CFR Part 1926 · read the standard ↗

   • Worker rights and the right to refuse

     Workers have the right to: a workplace free of recognized hazards, training in a language they understand, copies of safety data sheets and injury logs, and the right to file a complaint with OSHA. Workers also have a limited right to refuse work that poses an imminent danger of death or serious physical harm — but only after asking the employer to fix it, and only when there is no time to wait for an OSHA inspection.

     Reference: OSH Act §11(c) 29 U.S.C. 660(c)

   • OSHA poster and reporting requirements

     Employers must post the OSHA 'It's the Law' poster (OSHA 3165) in a conspicuous place at the worksite. Worker fatalities must be reported to OSHA within 8 hours; inpatient hospitalizations, amputations, and loss of an eye within 24 hours. Workers can call 1-800-321-OSHA or file online to report a hazard or fatality.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1904.39

   Practice questions (2)

   1. 1. A foreman tells a crew that OSHA does not apply because the crew is non-union. What is correct?

      • A.The foreman is correct — OSHA only covers union jobs
      • B.OSHA covers most private-sector workers regardless of union status✓ correct
      • C.OSHA only covers federal-contract jobs
      • D.OSHA only applies to projects over 1 million dollars

      OSHA covers virtually all private-sector employers under federal jurisdiction or via an OSHA-approved State Plan. Union status, contract size, and federal involvement do not change coverage. The narrow exceptions are self-employed individuals with no employees and immediate-family farm workers.

   2. 2. You are scared a hazard will hurt someone. Which of these is the FIRST step OSHA expects?

      • A.Walk off the job and call 1-800-321-OSHA
      • B.Tell the employer about the hazard and ask them to correct it✓ correct
      • C.File a §11(c) retaliation complaint preemptively
      • D.Take photos for a personal injury lawyer

      Even for the right-to-refuse protection to apply, the worker is generally expected to first ask the employer to correct the hazard. Walking off without notice rarely qualifies for whistleblower protection unless the danger is imminent and there's no time. Filing §11(c) preemptively makes no sense — it's for when retaliation has occurred.

2. 02Focus Four hazards

   ~90min

   Falls, electrocution, caught-in/between, and struck-by — the four hazards that account for ~63% of construction worker deaths every year. The 10-hour devotes substantial time to all four.

   • Falls — the 6-foot trigger

     Construction fall protection is required when workers are exposed to a fall of 6 feet or more to a lower level. Acceptable systems are guardrails, safety nets, or personal fall-arrest systems. The threshold applies on roofs, scaffolds, ladders, leading edges, and around any unprotected hole.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1926.501

   • Electrocution — overhead power lines

     Equipment, ladders, scaffolds, and workers must stay at least 10 feet away from overhead lines rated 50 kV or below. For higher voltages, add 4 inches per 10 kV above 50. Lines must be assumed energized unless and until verified de-energized AND visibly grounded at the worksite.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1408

   • Caught-in/between — trenches and rotating equipment

     Workers can be crushed or pulled into excavations, machinery, or moving parts. Trench protective systems (sloping, shoring, shielding) are required at depths over 5 feet (or any depth in unstable soil). Guards on rotating equipment must be in place before the equipment runs.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1926.652

   • Struck-by — flying, falling, swinging objects

     Hard hats are required when there is a possibility of head injury from impact, falling/flying objects, or electrical shock. Workers should never stand under a suspended load. Vehicle blind spots cause struck-by fatalities — high-vis apparel and a competent spotter are the controls.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1926.100

   Practice questions (2)

   1. 1. On a flat commercial roof 8 feet above the ground, fall protection is required?

      • A.No — flat roofs are exempt
      • B.No — under 10 feet does not trigger protection
      • C.Yes — the construction trigger is 6 feet✓ correct
      • D.Only if the worker requests it

      1926.501 sets the construction fall-protection trigger at 6 feet, regardless of roof slope. Flat roofs are not exempt. The 10-foot rule confuses many candidates with general industry; on a construction site the answer is always 6.

   2. 2. A worker is unloading lumber from a flatbed and is hit by a sliding bundle. Which Focus Four hazard?

      • A.Caught-in/between
      • B.Struck-by✓ correct
      • C.Electrocution
      • D.Fall

      Struck-by hazards involve being hit by flying, falling, swinging, or rolling objects. A sliding lumber bundle hitting a worker is classic struck-by. Caught-in/between would apply if the worker were pinned BETWEEN the bundle and another object.

3. 03PPE and health hazards

   ~60min

   When PPE is required, who pays for it, and how to recognize the silent health hazards (silica, asbestos, lead, noise) that hurt workers years after the exposure.

   • Employer pays for required PPE

     PPE — hard hats, eye/face protection, hearing protection, fall-arrest systems, gloves, respirators — is provided by the employer at no cost to the worker. Narrow exceptions: ordinary safety-toed footwear and prescription safety eyewear when the worker is allowed to take them off-site. Replacement is also employer-paid except when the worker has lost or intentionally damaged the gear.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1926.95(d)

   • Respirable crystalline silica

     Silica dust from cutting or grinding concrete, masonry, or stone causes silicosis, lung cancer, and kidney disease. The OSHA permissible exposure limit (PEL) is 50 µg/m³ over an 8-hour TWA. Most jobs use Table 1 — choose the listed task, follow the listed engineering control (water, vacuum), and you don't need exposure monitoring.

     Reference: 29 CFR 1926.1153

   Practice questions (1)

   1. 1. A new hire on a concrete-cutting job is told they must buy their own dust mask. Correct?

      • A.Yes — masks are personal hygiene items
      • B.No — respirators are employer-paid PPE under 1926.95(d)✓ correct
      • C.Yes, but only for the first 30 days
      • D.Only if they signed an arbitration clause

      Respirators are explicitly listed as employer-paid in 1926.95(d). The "off-site footwear/eyewear" exception does not apply. Charging workers for required PPE is an OSHA violation regardless of tenure or contract terms.

External resources

• Official
  OSHA Pocket Guide to Construction Safety (Pub 3252) ↗

  40-page agency-published condensation of the most-cited construction standards. Skim this twice — half the 10-hour content traces to its pages.

• Official
  OSHA 'It's the Law' Worker Rights Poster (3165) ↗

  The poster every employer must display. Reading it through is a 5-minute primer on every right the Introduction module covers.

• Official
  OSHA Construction Focus Four Training Modules ↗

  Free downloadable instructor guides + student handouts for all four Focus Four hazards. Use these to test yourself between modules.