Editorial Note on Part 1926
Editorial Notes: 1. At 44 FR 8577, Feb. 9, 1979, and corrected at 44 FR 20940, Apr. 6, 1979, OSHA reprinted without change the entire text of 29 CFR part 1926 together with certain General Industry Occupational Safety and Health Standards contained in 29 CFR part 1910, which have been identified as also applicable to construction work. This republication developed a single set of OSHA regulations for both labor and management forces within the construction industry. 2. Nomenclature changes to part 1926 appear at 84 FR 21597, May 14, 2019.

§ 1926.32 Definitions. The following definitions shall apply in the application of the regulations in this part: ( a ) *Act* means section 107 of the Contract Work Hours and Safety Standards Act, commonly known as the Construction Safety Act (86 Stat. 96; 40 U.S.C. 333).
( b ) *ANSI* means American National Standards Institute.
( c ) *Approved* means sanctioned, endorsed, accredited, certified, or accepted as satisfactory by a duly constituted and nationally recognized authority or agency.
( d ) *Authorized person* means a person approved or assigned by the employer to perform a specific type of duty or duties or to be at a specific location or locations at the jobsite.
( e ) *Administration* means the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
( f ) *Competent person* means one who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them.
( g ) *Construction work.* For purposes of this section, *Construction work* means work for construction, alteration, and/or repair, including painting and decorating.
( h ) *Defect* means any characteristic or condition which tends to weaken or reduce the strength of the tool, object, or structure of which it is a part.
( i ) *Designated person* means “authorized person” as defined in paragraph (d) of this section.
( j ) *Employee* means every laborer or mechanic under the Act regardless of the contractual relationship which may be alleged to exist between the laborer and mechanic and the contractor or subcontractor who engaged him. “Laborer and mechanic” are not defined in the Act, but the identical terms are used in the Davis-Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 276a), which provides for minimum wage protection on Federal and federally assisted construction contracts. The use of the same term in a statute which often applies concurrently with section 107 of the Act has considerable precedential value in ascertaining the meaning of “laborer and mechanic” as used in the Act. *Laborer* generally means one who performs manual labor or who labors at an occupation requiring physical strength; *mechanic* generally means a worker skilled with tools. See 18 Comp. Gen. 341.
( k ) *Employer* means contractor or subcontractor within the meaning of the Act and of this part.
( l ) *Hazardous substance* means a substance which, by reason of being explosive, flammable, poisonous, corrosive, oxidizing, irritating, or otherwise harmful, is likely to cause death or injury.
( m ) *Qualified* means one who, by possession of a recognized degree, certificate, or professional standing, or who by extensive knowledge, training, and experience, has successfully demonstrated his ability to solve or resolve problems relating to the subject matter, the work, or the project.
( n ) *Safety factor* means the ratio of the ultimate breaking strength of a member or piece of material or equipment to the actual working stress or safe load when in use.
( o ) *Secretary* means the Secretary of Labor.
( p ) *SAE* means Society of Automotive Engineers.
( q ) *Shall* means mandatory.
( r ) *Should* means recommended.
( s ) *Suitable* means that which fits, and has the qualities or qualifications to meet a given purpose, occasion, condition, function, or circumstance.
[44 FR 8577, Feb. 9, 1979; 44 FR 20940, Apr. 6, 1979, as amended at 58 FR 35078, June 30, 1993]