[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 242 (Monday, December 17, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 74695-74696]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-30315]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

[Docket No. OSHA-2010-0059]
RIN 1218-AC51


Preventing Backover Injuries and Fatalities

AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.

ACTION: Notice of stakeholder meetings.

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SUMMARY: OSHA invites interested parties to participate in informal 
stakeholder meetings on preventing backover injuries and fatalities. 
OSHA plans to use information gathered at these meetings to evaluate 
backover risks across various industries, whether or how backovers may 
be prevented by new technology or other methods, and how effective 
those measures are.

DATES: Dates and locations for the stakeholder meetings are:
    1. January 8, 2013 at 9:00 a.m. and January 9, 2013 at 9:00 a.m. in 
Washington, DC.
    2. February 5, 2013 at 9:00 a.m., 2:00 p.m., and 7:00 p.m. in 
Arlington, TX.

ADDRESSES: The meeting locations are:
    1. Frances Perkins Building, Department of Labor, Room C-5515 1A & 
1B for January 8 and Room C-5521 for January 9, 200 Constitution Avenue 
NW., Washington, DC.
    2. University of Texas at Arlington, OSHA Education Center, 
Bluebonnet Ballroom in the University Center, 300 W. First St., 
Arlington, Texas.

I. Registration

    Submit your notice of intent to participate in one of the scheduled 
meetings by one of the following:
     Electronic. Register at https://www2.ergweb.com/projects/conferences/osha/register-osha-backover.htm Web site (follow the 
instructions online).
     Facsimile. Fax your request to: (781) 674-2906, and label 
it ``Attention: OSHA Backover Stakeholder Meeting Registration.''
     Regular mail, express delivery, hand (courier) delivery, 
and messenger service. Send your request to: Eastern Research Group, 
Inc., 110 Hartwell Avenue, Lexington, MA 02421; Attention: OSHA 
Backover Stakeholder Meeting Registration.
     Phone. Telephone registration number is (781) 674-7374.

II. Meetings

    Specific information on the schedule and location of each meeting 
can be found on the Backover Web site of OSHA's contractor Eastern 
Research Group at https://www2.ergweb.com/projects/conferences/osha/register-osha-backover.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Information regarding this notice is 
available from the following sources:
     Press inquiries. Contact Frank Meilinger, Director, OSHA 
Office of Communications, Room N-3647, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 
Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20210; telephone: (202) 693-
1999.
     General and technical information. Contact Meghan Smith, 
OSHA Directorate of Construction, Room N-3467, U.S. Department of 
Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20210, telephone: 
(202) 693-2020.
     Copies of this Federal Register notice. Electronic copies 
are available at http://www.regulations.gov. This Federal Register 
notice, as well as news releases and other relevant information, also 
are available on the OSHA web page at http://www.osha.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    BLS reported that 79 workers were killed in 2011 when backing 
vehicles or mobile equipment, especially those with an obstructed view 
to the rear, crushed them against an object and/or struck or rolled 
over them. A search of OSHA's Integrated Management Information System 
database identified 358 fatal backover incidents from 2005 to 2010. Of 
these deaths, 216 occurred in general industry, shipyard employment, 
maritime and agriculture industries, and 142 occurred in construction. 
OSHA has also presented information on backover hazards on its Web 
page: http://www.osha.gov/doc/topics/backover/index.html. While some 
backover fatalities are caused by forklifts, the Agency is focusing on 
vehicles with obstructed views to the rear. Because forklifts do not, 
in general, have an obstructed view to the rear, the Agency is not 
attempting to collect more information on forklifts and similar 
equipment in the stakeholder meetings.
    OSHA published a Request for Information (RFI) on backover hazards 
in the Federal Register on March 29, 2012 (77 FR 18973). The RFI was 
published jointly with a notice on hazards in Reinforced Concrete in 
Construction. OSHA received comments from 32 individuals and 
organizations, and these are available on www.regulations.gov under 
docket OSHA-2010-0059.
    Many commercial or construction vehicles have audible alarms that 
sound when the vehicle is put into reverse and backs up. OSHA has three 
construction safety standards that require backup alarms or spotters 
when backing a vehicle with an obstructed view to the rear: 29 CFR 
Sec.  1926.601(b)(4) covers motor vehicles; Sec.  1926.602(a)(9)(ii) 
covers material handling equipment; Sec.  1926.952(a)(3) covers 
equipment used in power generation and transmission construction. For 
general industry, Sec.  1910.269(p)(1)(ii) provides similar 
requirements for vehicular equipment operated at off-highway jobsites.
    New technologies have been developed to address backing hazards, 
including: Cameras and proximity sensing technology, such as radar and 
sonar, and new types of audible alarms that focus the alarm's sound or 
are combined with lights. In addition, internal traffic plans that 
control the flow of traffic and limit backing can help prevent 
backovers. The Agency is considering whether these technologies or 
other approaches, including training for drivers and spotters, can 
better address the risks of backing equipment

[[Page 74696]]

which have an obstructed view to the rear.

State Regulations: Virginia and Washington

    Washington and Virginia have their own state occupational safety 
and health programs and have issued regulations designed to prevent 
backover incidents. In Virginia, vehicles with an obstructed view to 
the rear, whether used in construction or general industry, must have a 
backup alarm audible above the surrounding noise level. The driver must 
also have the assistance of a camera, work with a spotter, or 
``visually determine that no employee is in the path of the vehicle'' 
prior to backing (16VAC25-97-30).
    The State of Washington's regulation is limited in scope to dump 
trucks. Washington's rule requires ``an operable mechanical device that 
provides the driver a full view behind the dump truck [to be] used, 
such as a video camera,'' or spotters when using dump trucks when 
people will be walking behind them (WAC 296-155-610(2)(f)).

II. Stakeholder Meetings

    Stakeholder meetings are meant to provide an opportunity for 
affected employers and employees, as well as safety professionals and 
equipment makers, to inform OSHA of the best means to address the risks 
of backovers. The Agency is interested in collecting information for 
all industries on:
     The risks of backovers;
     Current measures taken to address backover hazards;
     The effectiveness of those measures;
     Information about the number of vehicles or employees 
affected; and
     The costs of protective measures.

III. Public Participation

    Each stakeholder meeting will have 15-20 active participants with 
room for 20-30 observers. Meetings are expected to last about two 
hours. Stakeholders may register as ``participants'' or ``observers.'' 
Participants will actively participate in discussions and present their 
views and experience, while observers typically will not have an 
opportunity to speak unless time permits at the end of the meeting. 
Stakeholders may only register as participants in one of the two 
sessions. Each meeting will have the same questions or agenda. If too 
few stakeholders register for a particular session, the Agency will 
eliminate that session and combine it with another and inform 
registrants of the change. The meetings will be conducted as group 
discussions, with individual stakeholders describing what occurs in 
their business or industry with regard to backover hazards. To 
facilitate as much group interaction as possible, formal presentations 
will not be permitted.
    OSHA staff will be present to take part in the discussions. 
Logistics for the meetings are being managed by Eastern Research Group 
(ERG). Participants and observers must register to attend by contacting 
ERG via one of the methods described at the beginning of this notice. 
Participants and observers will be registered on a first-come, first-
serve basis. If there is room at the meeting, stakeholders or the 
general public can attend as observers if they have not pre-registered. 
Any changes to the schedule of meetings will be noted at the ERG Web 
site.
    OSHA will have a facilitator at the stakeholder meetings to help 
guide the discussion and record notes on flip charts. ERG provides a 
summary of comments at the meeting which OSHA will place on the 
backover Web page at http://www.osha.gov/doc/topics/backover/index.html. In order to encourage a free exchange of views, 
information, and ideas, these notes will not identify the individuals 
who make comments. ERG makes an audio recording of each session to 
ensure that the summary notes are accurate, but these recordings will 
not be transcribed or published. Although members of the press may 
attend stakeholder meetings, the Agency asks them not to quote speakers 
by name or affiliation in any published reports, as the intent of the 
meeting is informational only. An example of stakeholder summary 
comments can be found here: http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/pdf/Modernization_DC_5-25-10.pdf.

IV. Authority and Signature

    This document was prepared under the direction of David Michaels, 
Ph.D., MPH, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and 
Health, U.S. Department of Labor, pursuant to sections 4, 6, and 8 of 
the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 653, 655, 
657), 29 CFR part 1911, and Secretary's Order 1-2012 (77 FR 3912).

    Signed at Washington, DC, on December 12, 2012.
David Michaels,
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health.
[FR Doc. 2012-30315 Filed 12-14-12; 8:45 am]
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