Roles & authorities
Competent person (safety)
In construction safety, a competent person is someone the employer designates who can recognize the hazards in a particular kind of work and who has the authority to take prompt corrective action to eliminate them. Certain operations require one by regulation: excavation and trenching, scaffolding, fall protection and similar high-risk work each call for a competent person for that scope. The designation is specific to the task and comes from the employer, based on the person's training and experience.
Run it with the Photo Gate
Construction safety inspection checklist
12 items · 25 photos required
Why it matters
The two parts both have to be there: the knowledge to spot the hazard and the authority to stop or fix it. A person who can see a trench is unsafe but can't halt the work isn't serving the role. The point is that someone on site can act before an incident, not after.
The role is scope-specific. Being the competent person for excavation doesn't make someone the competent person for scaffolding; each high-risk operation needs a person qualified for that work.
How it shows up on site
The competent person inspects the operation before and during the work (a trench before crews enter, a scaffold before use) and documents that it was checked and found safe or corrected. Dated inspection records and photos of the condition tie the check to the specific work and the specific day it protected.
Checklists that put competent person (safety) to work
Free, field-ready checklists, each with the photo every item needs before it can be submitted.
Related terms
- SuperintendentThe contractor's field leader who runs the site day to day: sequencing crews, scheduling inspections and holding the work to standard.
- General contractor (GC)The contractor who holds the prime construction contract and is responsible for delivering the whole project: trades, means and methods, and completed work.
- SubcontractorA specialty contractor hired under the general contractor to perform a defined scope of work, such as electrical, plumbing or drywall.
- Materials testing laboratoryA laboratory that tests construction materials (concrete, soils, steel, asphalt) to confirm they meet the specified properties.
- Threshold inspectorA qualified inspector assigned to continuously inspect structural work on larger or higher-risk buildings where a jurisdiction requires it.
- Fire marshalThe fire-code authority who inspects life-safety and fire-protection systems and whose signoff is usually required before a building can be occupied.
Knowing the term is step one. Proving it is the job.
RTI holds the submit button until every mandatory item is answered and the photos are attached, then chains the record so it can be proven untouched later.
30-day trial · No card required