Outside doormats and trip hazards

June 9, 2005

Mr. Thomas Hughes

[Recipient address omitted]

Dear Mr. Hughes:

Thank you for your letter to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The Directorate of Enforcement Programs (DEP) received your letter on June 1. You inquired about whether outside doormats need to be glued to the concrete. This letter constitutes OSHA's interpretation only of the requirements discussed and may not be applicable to any question or scenario not delineated within your original correspondence.

Question: Do outside doormats need to be glued to the concrete? If they do need to be glued, is just gluing the center and leaving the edges unglued acceptable?

Reply: OSHA has no standards that specifically address the installation and use of outside doormats. However, 29 CFR 1910.22(a)(1), the general requirements for walking-working surfaces, requires that all areas be kept in a clean, orderly and in a sanitary condition. Adhering the edges of the doormat to the concrete, while not explicitly required, may be one way to prevent a trip hazard and ensure that the entry is clean and orderly.

Thank you for your interest in occupational safety and health. We hope you find this information helpful. Please be aware that OSHA's enforcement guidance is subject to periodic review and clarification, amplification, or correction. Such guidance could also be affected by subsequent rulemaking. In the future, should you wish to verify that the guidance provided herein remains current, you may consult OSHA's website at http://www.osha/gov. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact the Office of General Industry Enforcement at (202) 693-1850.

Sincerely,

Richard E. Fairfax, Director

Directorate of Enforcement Programs