Employers must ensure that heavy equipment is properly supported, stable, and used within its limits so it cannot tip or collapse and crush workers, and they must keep workers out of crush zones around that equipment.

Core OSHA requirement (the test-style answer)

OSHA training materials on “Caught‑In or ‑Between” hazards explain that, to comply with regulations on protecting workers from being crushed by heavy equipment, employers must ensure that a crane’s (or other heavy equipment’s) support surface is firm, level, and able to support the load so the equipment does not tip over. This is often summarized in exam and module questions as: “Ensure that a crane’s support surface is firm and able to support the load.”

In other words, OSHA expects employers to prevent the tip‑over in the first place, not just react after something goes wrong.

What OSHA says more broadly

OSHA’s “Construction Focus Four: Caught‑In or ‑Between Hazards” materials spell this out in more general language.

Employers must, among other duties:

  • Take measures to prevent workers from being crushed by heavy equipment that tips over.
  • Take measures to prevent workers from being pinned between equipment and solid objects.
  • Make sure equipment is supported, secured, or otherwise made safe if it has parts that workers could be caught between.
  • Designate a competent person and provide training so workers can recognize crush and caught‑between hazards.

OSHA gives specific examples, including:

  • Determining whether the ground is sufficiently level and firm to support the anticipated weight of heavy equipment.
  • Equipping vehicles, forklifts, and earth‑moving equipment with seat belts and requiring their use, to prevent operators being thrown out and crushed if the machine tips.

Practical measures employers are expected to take

Taking OSHA’s requirements and guidance together, employers typically must:

  • Check soil and ground conditions before setting up cranes and other heavy machinery, and improve or change the setup if the surface is not firm/level enough.
  • Stay within the equipment’s rated load capacity and follow the manufacturer’s operating limits to avoid tip‑overs.
  • Keep workers clear of swing radiuses and other crush or pinch zones around cranes, backhoes, and similar equipment.
  • Prohibit work under suspended loads and keep travel paths and work zones organized so workers are not in the path of moving machinery.
  • Use rollover‑protective structures and seat belts, and enforce wearing them.
  • Restrict access so that only necessary, trained personnel are in areas where heavy equipment is operating.

A simple way to picture this: before a crane ever lifts its first load, the employer has already checked the ground, marked off danger zones, trained workers, and put rules in place so no one is standing where they could be crushed if something goes wrong.

TL;DR: For OSHA compliance on this specific question, the “best” answer is that employers must ensure a crane’s (or heavy equipment’s) support surface is firm and able to support the load , as part of a broader duty to prevent tip‑overs and keep workers out of crush zones.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.