Just to re-iterate: US
OSHA regulations apply to employees and employors in the private sector. Many states extend the rules to the public sector employees. At a private college, I doubt that there any work situations that are exclusively done by nonemployees (students) that could also be done by employees (custodians, maintenece pepople, teachers) who are covered by
OSHA rules. If it's not safe for the nonemployees, then its not safe for the employees, and that's a problem.
US
OSHA regulations can be found in Title 29 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1910 and 1926. The applicability of the regulations is described in 29 CFR 1910.5.
Also, US
OSHA has a pretty good website.
Joe
You also need to check with your state's Department of Labor as to the definition of what an employee is. In some states, you can be defined as a non-compensated employee which covers volunteers and students. Also, this can define what activities the student may participate in. While theater is not defined by the US Department of Labor, some of the activities we participate in are specifically mentioned and have age restrictions (operation of powered woodworking equipment such as circular saws).
I commend all of you who choose to practice our art safely. Please remember that accidents don't always cause death. It can be worse for you to not sustain a fatal injury by living with the pain from an accident and loss of ability to work. Not only that, but you could end up paralyzed or in a coma. I understand that you may understand your own limitations and feel that you are behaving in a safe manner, but rarely are we working alone (and if you are doing something dangerous on your own, that falls into another
category). After all, accidents aren't planned and are not always caused by the person who is the victim.
I am glad to hear that so many of you are aware of safe practices and are trying to make others aware of it. I was terminated as a technical director from one of the premier not-for-profit theater centers in Phoenix primarily because I was enforcing
safety (and reported violations to
OSHA when the management failed to comply with federal and state regulations). Personally, I can't understand how any management would want to knowingly allow unsafe practices in their theater. When an accident occurs, every person in the food chain is liable until proven otherwise (for me it would have been as follows: the victim, co-workers, their immediate supervisors from their company, me, my boss, the non-profit running the complex, and finally the City which owned the complex). Of course my employer was somewhat aware of this so it wasn't written policy to ignore
safety standards, but it was understood that we were to do so. When I put up a stink, especially after several unreported incidents (and a couple reported incidents), I was terminated for "differences of opinion"; just before the slow season.
Fortunately I now work for an employer who has the utmost concern for their employees. We
cover many subjects as web-based tutorials as well as hands on classes. All technicians who will be required to be in areas where fall protection is needed are issued their own harness. Granted, I work in a
venue that has a much larger budget than most, but safe practices are cheaper than lawsuits. If your school or
venue doesn't have it in their
current budget to put in
safety measures, apply for grants, look for free training on the web, and
OSHA will come for free and help you determine your
safety needs (and you don't get fined when you invite them in this way). You can find out who the
safety officer is for your
venue and they should be aware of your working conditions. You have the right to work in
safety!
Remember that just because you have a harness doesn't mean that you are safe from harm. Get proper training in identification of safe tie off points and necessary clearance. Make sure there is a rescue plan in case of a fall (even if it is as simple as who is responsible for calling 911).
I am sorry for the long winded post, but this is an important subject to me. I have worked hard over the years trying to help prevent injury and death to my friends and co-workers.