New tower crane regulation takes effect Oct. 1
A Notice of Project will be required to be submitted to WorkSafeBC before any tower crane activities take place in B.C.
New regulations come into effect Oct. 1, 2024, that aim to improve the safety of tower cranes in British Columbia.
Amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation in B.C. will require employers to submit a Notice of Project (NOP) for tower crane erection, climbing, repositioning, and dismantling. While NOPs are already required by WorkSafeBC for many types of work activities, this is a new requirement specifically for tower crane operations.
The NOP will provide WorkSafeBC with more precise information on tower crane activities in B.C., helping to guide its inspection approach, enhance safety efforts, and facilitate engagement before the work begins. The new requirements will enable WorkSafeBC to identify the qualified supervisor responsible for the crane activity, as well as determine who will perform the work, and when, where, and how it will be carried out.
Under the new regulations, every employer responsible for a tower crane activity at a workplace in B.C. must ensure that WorkSafeBC receives a written notice of project at least two weeks before the crane activity starts. The Notice of Project must include:
- Name and contact information for the parties responsible for the crane activity
- Address or location of the workplace
- Nature and scope of the crane activity and of the project that involves the crane activity
- Start date and estimated duration of the crane activity
- Identification information for the tower crane
- Work procedures specific to the workplace that ensures the safety of a person during crane activity
- Qualifications of the person who is the qualified supervisor
Crane safety in B.C.
There are approximately 350 tower cranes currently operating in B.C. While tower cranes typically operate safely and without incident, they have the potential to create catastrophic risk to workers and the public.
WorkSafeBC has determined that the risks associated with cranes in B.C. are increasing as more cranes are in operation than ever before, and work is taking place on increasingly complex, multi-employer worksites.
In March and July of this year, following several crane-related incidents in the Lower Mainland, WorkSafeBC brought together 130 crane-sector stakeholders, including labour representatives, tower crane operators, employers, prime contractors, rental companies, and the BC Association for Crane Safety to identify and address gaps in crane safety.
Following a comprehensive review of crane safety in early 2024 — and informed by stakeholder input and feedback — WorkSafeBC developed a new crane and rigging risk-reduction strategy with recommendations to improve crane safety in B.C.
Ongoing discussions with the B.C. Ministry of Labour, SkilledTradesBC, and industry stakeholders — including labour groups, employers, and the BC Association for Crane Safety — will continue to inform WorkSafeBC’s strategy to enhance crane safety.
WorkSafeBC’s crane and rigging safety strategy builds on its crane and mobile equipment safety initiative, which aims to identify and eliminate unsafe work practices and equipment hazards that have the potential to cause death, serious injury and/or catastrophic equipment failure.
More information:
- Media backgrounder: Tower Crane Safety
- Crane and Mobile Equipment Planned Inspectional Initiative
- BC Association for Crane Safety
About WorkSafeBC
WorkSafeBC engages workers and employers to prevent injury, disease, and disability in B.C. When work-related injuries or diseases occur, WorkSafeBC provides compensation and support to people in their recovery, rehabilitation, and safe return to work. We serve 2.7 million workers and 280,000 employers across B.C.
For more information, contact:
Media Relations, WorkSafeBC
Email: media@worksafebc.com
Tel: 604-276-5157