Qualified Person
This is a person who has earned a recognized degree, certificate, or professional standing, or has extensive knowledge, training and experience. This is also a person that has successfully demonstrated the ability to solve/resolve problems relating to the subject matter, the work, or the project.
- Qualified person duties include conducting annual/comprehensive inspections of all equipment as well as inspections of modified equipment.
Competent Person
This is the person who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions that are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has the authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them.
- A competent person must conduct shift and monthly inspections of all equipment.
- A qualified crane operator who has the authority to take corrective measures will be considered a competent person.
Both qualified and competent persons may also be responsible for duties dealing with developing assembly/disassembly procedures, wire rope safety, fall protection, maintenance and repair, hoisting personnel, multiple crane/derrick lifts, equipment modifications, tower cranes, derricks, and floating cranes/derricks.
Compliance with U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards is essential to keeping employees safe in the workplace. While most businesses strive to be OSHA compliant, some run into difficulties in doing so due to their lack of understanding U.S. OSHA standards. Competent and qualified persons are one such area where confusion continues to persist, as OSHA’s regulations fail to get into the nitty-gritty of how each role operates and interacts with the other outside of their accepted definitions. While the competent person designation is also required under OSHA for silica and confined space applications in construction, the confusion is really between competent and qualified persons for fall protection.
