Legal Memorandum: Duty of a Construction Site Manager in FL

Issue: Under Florida law, what is the duty of a construction site manager to invitees on the site?

First, an owner or occupier of land must give timely warning to an invitee of latent and concealed dangers it knows of, or which it should have known of through the exercise of due care.  Hall v. Holland, 47 So. 2d 889, 891 (Fla. 1950); Wimbush v. Gaddis, 713 So. 2d 1107, 1107 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 1998).  Second, Site Managers have a duty of reasonable care in maintaining the premises in a reasonably safe condition.  Hall, 47 So. 2d at 891.  Third, Site Managers are required by OSHA to provide certain safeguards for an invitee:

When mobile equipment is operated adjacent to an excavation, or when such equipment is required to approach the edge of an excavation, and the operator does not have a clear and direct view of the edge of the excavation, a warning system shall be utilized such as barricades, hand or mechanical signals, or stop logs.  If possible, the grade should be away from the excavation.

29 C.F.R. § 1926.651(f) (1998);

Employees shall not work in excavations in which there is accumulated water, or in excavations in which water is accumulating, unless adequate precautions have been taken to protect employees against the hazards posed by water accumulation.  The precautions […]

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