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Safety Focus of the Week: Seat Belts – Protect Yourself & Protect Your Co-Workers
Seat belts are proven to save lives. Seat belts are the law for motor vehicles and are required by OSHA in most ride-on heavy construction equipment. Exceptions to seat belt use is typically for equipment without roll-over protection systems (ROPS) or with fold-down ROPS in the folded down position.
While seat belts will obviously help protect the operator in an accident, another very important safety benefit is that the operator will be restrained to the seat and controls which could help eliminate or reduce the effect of a collision or impact. This restraint is particularly important in heavy equipment and motor vehicles on off-road sites where less than ideal ground conditions can sometimes cause a the vehicle to bounce suddenly making the operator lose some level of control. Therefore, seat belts are required not just to protect the operator but to protect workers on the ground.
