Safety Means of Egress as Laid Down By OSHA

The general industry courses as reviewed and approved by OSHA stress on the safety of all employees at work sites. They aim at protecting workers from accidents, injuries and all the potential disasters lurking in the work place. One of the many duties of this federal agency is to guarantee a safety means of exit from a building in case of a mishap. It has developed safety codes to see that exit routes are easily accessible for employees during working hours.

There should be at least two different exit routes from the work place that are placed as far away from each other as possible. Of course, factors like the design of the building and the number of employees will be considered as exception factors. Each exit route has to be seventy eight inches in height and twenty eight inches in width. They should be separated from the workplace with fireproof material. They should also open on to a courtyard or an open space.

In the case of outdoor exit routes, they should have guard rails if there is a risk of employees falling. They should be straight and be regularly cleared if accumulated with ice or snow. All exit doors should be kept unlocked at all times. They should be side hinged. Any means of obstruction should be removed.