Work at height
Work carried out in a place where a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury. GB regulations define the term broadly, including at ground level. OSHA fall protection applies different trigger heights by industry and task.
The same term carries different legal meaning across frameworks. Read each jurisdiction entry carefully.
Also known as
By jurisdiction
UK HSE
“work at height”Exact equivalent“Regulation 2 of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/735) defines work at height as work in any place, including a place at or below ground level, where a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury. The definition is deliberately broad.”
Irish HSA
“work at height”Close equivalentThe Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (General Application) Regulations 2007 (SI 299/2007), Part 4, implements the Temporary Work at Height Directive. Requirements cover planning, supervision, equipment and risk assessment. The Irish definition is broadly similar to the GB definition.
US OSHA
“fall protection”Partial equivalentOSHA does not use work at height as a regulatory term. Fall protection requirements are set by industry and trigger height: 29 CFR 1926.502 (construction, 6 feet); 29 CFR 1910.28 (general industry, 4 feet from walking-working surfaces).
Practitioner note: WAHR 2005 (GB) definition is deliberately broad: any place where a person could fall a distance liable to cause personal injury, including ground level adjacent to an excavation. OSHA does not use this unified definition — it addresses specific equipment types and height thresholds separately.