The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) has officially updated Construction Safety and Health Standard Part 25: Concrete Construction, effective June 22, 2026.
This is the first comprehensive modernization of these rules in years, moving away from outdated voluntary standards (some dating back to 1983) to address the realities of modern concrete construction practices. For Michigan contractors, these updates introduce specific, strict compliance requirements.
Here is a breakdown of what has changed based on the official strike-and-bold revisions and how your business must adapt to remain compliant.
MIOSHA has heavily revised and expanded its dictionary of terms to remove ambiguity. Notable additions and modifications include clear, distinct definitions for:
How to Comply: Review these updated definitions with your safety managers, estimators, and project leads. Ensure that when roles like "competent person" or "qualified person" are assigned on-site, the designated individuals possess the legal authority and technical background matching MIOSHA's updated language.
The rules governing reinforcing steel have been tightened to prevent structural collapses before concrete is even poured.
How to Comply: Never leave the bracing of rebar cages or vertical rebar assemblies to guesswork. Document the designation of the "qualified person" overseeing the guying and bracing on-site.
Worker exposure to suspended loads and hazards during active concrete placement received a major overhaul.
How to Comply: Integrate "suspended load routing" into your daily Pre-Task Plans (PTPs) or Job Hazard Analyses (JHAs). Mark out clear drop zones and ensure spotters or physical barricades prevent workers from wandering beneath active crane or cableway concrete buckets.
Shoring and structural formwork failures are among the most catastrophic events in concrete construction.
How to Comply: Implement strict sign-off procedures. Before any concrete is poured, a competent person must inspect the forms and shoring, and that inspection should be logged in your project management system.
Managing an active, chaotic job site is a major factor in avoiding struck-by or caught-between injuries.
How to Comply: Establish clear traffic patterns, swing radiuses, and physical "safe zones" before heavy concrete mixing or pumping equipment moves onto the site. Use standard hand signals, high-visibility apparel, and dedicated spotters.
Perhaps the most significant addition to Part 25 is a brand-new, explicit mandate for documented worker training.
How to Comply: You can no longer rely on general OSHA 10-hour or 30-hour cards to cover concrete safety. You must implement a task-specific training program for your concrete crews. Crucially, maintain written or digital training records detailing the date of training, the concepts covered, the name of the employee, and the name of the qualified person who conducted the training. If MIOSHA inspects your site, these logs will be among the first documents requested.
MIOSHA's updated Part 25 brings concrete safety rules into the 2020s. To protect your workers and shield your business from costly "Serious" citations (which routinely cost thousands of dollars per violation), act now: