A building caulker fell from the 14th floor of a building as he was getting into his boatswain's (bosun's) chair. He was wearing a fall protection body harness with a web strap lanyard and a rope grab, but he did not attach himself to his lifeline before getting into the chair.

The worker had little, if any, experience working from bosun's chairs and had no formal training in either fall protection or bosun's chair safety. He told his employer that he had more than 9 months of experience working from a bosun's chair. The employer did not confirm his experience and qualifications with previous employers, nor did the employer provide instruction, training, and direct supervision before allowing him to work from a bosun's chair.

Safe work practices:

• Checking the references and qualifications of workers, especially for high-hazard work
• Training supervisors and ensuring they understand their responsibilities
• Providing workers with adequate instruction, training, and supervision

• Training and directly supervising workers to ensure workers are capable of performing their work safely, especially new workers and workers performing new tasks
• Ensuring workers follow safe work procedures
• Ensuring equipment used by workers is safe and in good condition
• Ensuring that a bosun's chair provides stable and adequate support for the user
• Regularly inspecting all equipment before use

• Taking reasonable care to protect their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their actions
• Following safe work procedures and not taking shortcuts or actions that may endanger themselves or others
• Using protective safety equipment, devices, and clothing provided and required