Court Opinion

ID: 9780845
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-30 03:00:58.875847+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:34:14.987333
License: Public Domain

MELTON, Justice,
dissenting.
Because I do not believe that the stairs on which Larry G. Smith slipped and fell are “fixed general industrial stairs” covered by OSHA at 29 CFR § 1910.24,1 do not believe that the trial court erred by denying Smith’s request to instruct the jurors otherwise. For this reason, the Court of Appeals’ contrary finding should be reversed, and I must respectfully dissent from the opinion of the majority.
29 CFR § 1910.24 (a) states:
This section contains specifications for the safe design and construction of fixed general industrial stairs. This classification includes interior and exterior stairs around machinery, tanks, and other equipment, and stairs leading to or from floors, platforms, or pits. This section does not apply to stairs used for fire exit purposes, to construction operations to private residences, or to articulated stairs, such as may be installed on floating roof tanks or on dock facilities, the angle of which changes with the rise and fall of the base support.
(Emphasis supplied.) As is clear from this definition, the statute governs stairs which are used for actual industrial purposes. Examples of these purposes are then set out in following subsections which refer to activities such as gauging and maintenance which “may expose employees to acids, caustics, gases, or other harmful substances” as well as “the carrying of tools or equipment by hand.” 29 CFR § 1910.24 (b). To increase safety conditions during these industrial uses, fixed general industrial stairs must be constructed to handle heavy loads, 29 CFR § 1910.24 (c), and help prevent slipping when industrial uses are ongoing. 29 CFR § 1910.24 (f). In the truly industrial setting contemplated by 29 CFR § 1910.24, these requirements prevent related industrial accidents.
In this case, however, Smith slipped on stairs in a CSX office building on his way to a meeting room. This office building was used for administrative purposes only, and the stairs on which Smith slipped were interior stairs that were not used for any industrial purposes such as gauging, inspecting, accessing elevated platforms, etc. As a result, they are not “fixed general industrial stairs” under *91029 CFR § 1910.24 which would require safety features specifically applicable to the type of truly industrial uses mentioned in the OSHA regulation. They were simply stairs adjoining two stories in an administrative office building owned by a company which was engaged in industrial uses in other buildings and locales.
Decided October 17, 2011.
Casey Gilson, James E. Gilson, Karen R. Dunbar, for appellant.
Michael J. Warshauer, Douglas C. Dumont, for appellee.
Therefore, because the stairs were not “fixed general industrial stairs,” the trial court did not err by refusing Smith’s request to instruct the jury regarding this regulation under OSHA. Accordingly, the Court of Appeals’ finding to the contrary should be reversed.