OSHA updating 1980s-era ‘fire brigades’ standard

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will formally propose an expansion to the department’s “fire brigades” standard, broadening it to cover a wider community of emergency responders, including EMTs, paramedics and some search and rescue workers. 

The new rule, which would represent the first update to the standard since it was created in 1980, will also modernize equipment and gear guidelines for firefighters and other first responders.

OSHA announced the proposal on Dec. 21, describing current regulations as “outdated,” “hazard-specific” and “narrow.” 

“Emergency responders are critical workers in all of our communities, and they deserve protections that keep up with today’s industry practices,” Doug Parker, assistant secretary for occupational safety and health, said in a statement accompanying the announcement. “We are proposing much-needed updates that will expand protections for emergency workers and bring our standards closer to common industry procedures.” 

The agency will formally propose the updated regulations, running at more than 600 pages, in the next couple weeks, Andrew Levinson, the director of OSHA’s Directorate of Standards and Guidance, told The Chief in an interview last week. He added that the original rule focused mainly on industrial fire brigades and private firefighters and the update would provide comprehensive guidance to emergency response departments of all sizes and types. 

“A lot of things that people take for granted about what a modern emergency response organization, what a modern fire department should be doing, that’s just missing from our old [regulation],” Levinson said. “It’s modernizing and updating the [regulation] to reflect what emergency response is today.” 

Levinson added that the rule is “very much not a one-size-fits-all approach" and would allow departments of varying sizes from different parts of the country to develop specific policies and training and decide what services they want to provide.  

The FDNY declined to comment. 

‘Safety a top priority’

New technologies like modern breathing apparatus, improved turnout gear for firefighters and personal alert safety systems are covered in the soon-to-be-proposed rule as well. The turnout gear referred to in the 1980 regulation, Levinson joked, could likely be found only in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington, D.C. 

Oren Barzilay, the president of District Council 37 Local 2507, which represents the FDNY’s EMTs, paramedics and fire protection inspectors, said in a statement that he was grateful for the additional protections for EMS workers. 

“The national shortage [of EMS workers] is still a concerning crisis and any way to improve the quality of life for emergency first responders that do so much every day is a welcome change,” he said. “Safety is a top priority for our EMS workers and we hope that these new standards will continue to be built upon in the future." 

OSHA created the proposed rule with the help of an advisory committee that included the International Association of Fire Fighters, the International Association of Fire Chiefs, the National Fire Protection Association, organizations representing volunteer firefighters, state occupational safety organizations and other groups. 

The International Association of Fire Fighters’ general president, Edward Kelly, said in a statement that the union has long advocated for changes to the standard and that the IAFF would review the proposed changes to the regulation.  

“The dangers faced by our nation's fire fighters have changed considerably over the past 40 years, and not for the better,” Kelly said. “Increased incidence of cancer, gear filled with deadly toxins, and a host of other health dangers have made our jobs more deadly than ever. We are grateful that President Biden continues to walk the walk and has prioritized these much-needed changes.” 

The Uniformed Firefighters Association and the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, representing firefighters at the FDNY, are affiliated with the IAFF.  

A 90-day written public comment period and a hearing in front of an administrative law judge on the regulation will follow once the rule is officially proposed.