Fall Protection During Floor Layout and Wall Construction

What does 1716.2(f) require?

Six foot protection for the deck crew, not just the crew on the members. 8 CCR 1716.2(f) provides that when working on floors and other walking or working surfaces 6 feet or more above the surrounding grade or floor level below that will later be enclosed by framed exterior walls, employees directly involved with the layout and construction of framed stud walls shall be protected from falling.

The named methods are personal fall protection systems, scaffolding, safety nets, standard guardrails as specified in section 1620 around all unprotected sides or edges, or a fall protection plan with safety monitors and controlled access zones where the employer demonstrates that conventional methods are infeasible.

Subsection (f) was one of the subsections amended in the 26 November 2024 filing, operative 1 July 2025.

Why does this subsection exist separately from (e)?

Because the exposure is different. Subsection (e) is about people on top plates, joists, rafters, trusses and beams. Subsection (f) is about people standing on a completed deck that has no exterior walls yet. The deck feels like a floor. It is an unprotected edge on every side.

The phrase "will later be enclosed by framed exterior walls" is what limits (f) to that condition. Once the walls are up the edge is gone, and so is the paragraph.

What are the standard guardrail dimensions?

Subsection (f) points to 8 CCR 1620, which is where the numbers live.

  • Top rail not less than 42 inches nor more than 45 inches, measured from the upper surface of the top rail to the floor or platform.
  • Mid rail halfway between the top rail and the floor where there is no wall or parapet wall at least 21 inches high. Screens, mesh, intermediate vertical members or solid panels may substitute, with no openings greater than 19 inches wide.
  • Wood posts not less than 2 inches by 4 inches, spaced at 8 foot or closer intervals. Wood top railings of 2 inch by 4 inch or larger material.
  • Railings, connections and anchorage capable of withstanding a force of at least 200 pounds applied to the top rail within 2 inches of the top edge, in any outward or downward direction, at any point along the top edge.
  • Under that 200 pound downward load the top edge shall not deflect to a height less than 39 inches above the walking or working level.
  • Mid rails and equivalent members capable of withstanding at least 150 pounds in any downward or outward direction.

How do openings in the deck have to be guarded?

Subsection (f)(1) is new as of 1 July 2025 and is short: floor, roof and wall openings shall be guarded as required by 8 CCR 1632.

Section 1632 gives two acceptable approaches for floor, roof and skylight openings. Temporary railings and toeboards meeting sections 1620 and 1621, provided on all exposed sides except at entrances to stairways. Or covers, which must be capable of safely supporting the greater of 400 pounds or twice the weight of employees, equipment and materials that may be imposed on any one square foot at any time, secured in place to prevent accidental removal or displacement, and bearing a pressure sensitized, painted or stenciled sign in legible letters not less than one inch high stating "Opening--Do Not Remove." Markings of chalk or keel are expressly not permitted.

Section 1632(j) covers wall openings from which there is a drop of more than 4 feet where the bottom of the opening is less than 3 feet above the working surface.

What about window installation?

Subsection (h) handles it directly. Wall openings shall be guarded as required by section 1632, and the guardrail may be removed immediately prior to the installation of the window components if removal of the guardrail is necessary to install the windows.

Two words carry the weight. "Immediately prior" is not the same as the morning of, and "if necessary" is a test, not a formality. A rail taken out at the start of the shift for a window going in after lunch is not what this subsection describes.

Does bracing affect this work?

Yes, upstream of it. Section 1716.2(d) prohibits working from or walking on top plates, joists, rafters, trusses, beams or other structural members until they are securely braced and supported, and subsection (c) sets restraint requirements for manually raising framed walls 15 feet or more in height. Both are covered on our bracing and raising walls page.

Related guides

Primary sources

By Matthew Horovitz, M Squared Safety Solutions, Inc., 981 Calle Negocio Suite 200, San Clemente, CA 92673, 949-954-6581. Published 9 September 2026. Every regulatory statement on this page was read against the operative Title 8 text and the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board rulemaking file on that date. This page describes what the regulations say. Whether a given provision is satisfied on a particular job is a determination for that employer and its own competent person.