Employers must ensure they are in compliance with most of OSHA’s beryllium rule’s requirements for general-industry and with the PEL and STEL in construction and shipyard industries by May 11, 2018.

The rule (29 CFR 1910.1024, 29 CFR 1915.1024, and 29 CFR 1926.1124), promulgated in January 2017, sets a new, lower eight-hour permissible exposure limit (PEL) of 0.2 micrograms per cubic meter and a new short-term (15-minute) exposure limit (STEL) of 2.0 micrograms per cubic meter.

OSHA will not enforce any other part of the construction and shipyard beryllium standards such as ancillary provisions (engineering controls and medical surveillance) in construction and shipyard operations until further notice. According to OSHA, these are subject to additional rulemaking.

Further, OSHA said the general-industry rule has been the topic of “extensive settlement talks” with several parties. Except for certain provisions requiring changing rooms and showers and some engineering controls, all aspects of the rule in general industry will be enforced beginning May 11, 2018. The changing rooms and showers provisions are effective on March 11, 2019, and requirements for engineering controls on March 10, 2020.