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Training Directory

NYC DOB SITE SAFETY TRAINING

4-Hour Fall Prevention

The fall protection refresher for renewing your NYC SST card. Online, self-paced, and built on DOB's course outline.

  • Online, self-paced
  • 4 hours
  • English
  • 4 hours of SST prescribed course credit
  • SST card included

Training Directory · NYC DOB provider ID SEED-DOB-0004

Course at a glance

Format
Online, self-paced
Length
4 hours of instruction (240 minutes)
Assessment
Knowledge checks after each module and a final exam, including fall distance calculations. You need 70% to pass.
Credential
4 hours of SST credit and a certificate of completion. This is awareness-level training, not a license or a competent person designation.

Renewing your SST card with the 4-hour fall prevention course

4-Hour Fall Prevention is an NYC DOB Site Safety Training (SST) course used to renew an SST card. It is a shorter refresher on the same subject as 8-Hour Fall Prevention: the three types of fall hazard, the heights that trigger protection, guardrails, holes and covers, ladders, scaffolds, personal fall arrest and fall distance. It follows DOB's course outline and draws on OSHA 29 CFR 1926 Subpart M and Chapter 33 of the NYC Building Code.

Local Law 196 of 2017 requires SST cards for construction and demolition workers and supervisors on sites that require a Site Safety Plan. Cards are valid for 5 years. To renew, you complete refresher training before your card expires, within the year before renewal. You do not retake OSHA.

Both SST Worker card renewal options include this course. Option 1 pairs it with 4-Hour Supported Scaffold User and Refresher. Option 2 pairs it with 2-Hour Mental Health Awareness and 2-Hour Tool Box Talks or Pre-Task Meeting. Supervisor card renewal Option 3 also uses it. A new card requires 8-Hour Fall Prevention; this 4-hour course does not replace it.

The course is online and self-paced, taken with a DOB-Registered Course Provider. It uses narrated slides, knowledge checks after each module, and a final exam that includes fall distance questions. Seat time is tracked, so the course cannot be finished in less than 4 hours. You will be asked to verify your identity. This is awareness-level training. It gives you 4 hours of SST credit and a certificate of completion, and it does not make you a competent person.

What you'll learn

Drawn from the training objectives in DOB's outline.

  • Name the three types of fall hazard and the height that triggers fall protection: 6 feet for most construction work, 10 feet on a scaffold.
  • Check a guardrail against the height and strength rules, and know what has to happen before one comes down.
  • Know what a hole cover must hold, how it is marked, and how it is secured so it cannot be moved.
  • Inspect a personal fall arrest system, and choose between fall arrest, restraint and positioning for the job in front of you.
  • Calculate the clearance your fall arrest system needs, and decide whether an anchorage will work.
  • Keep tools and material from falling on people below: toeboards, storage setbacks, tool tethers and head protection.

Course topics

Everything in DOB's outline for this course.

  1. Part 1 · Why falls happen

    • Fall fatality data and New York City incidents
    • The competent person and the qualified person
    • Three types of fall hazard and the trigger heights
    • Gravity, force and what a fall does to a body

  2. Part 2 · Edges, openings and zones

    • Guardrails and NYC perimeter protection
    • Holes, covers and safety nets
    • Controlled access zones, warning lines and safety monitors
    • Hoist areas, dangerous equipment and same-level falls

  3. Part 3 · Access and work at height

    • Stairs, ladders and getting between levels
    • Scaffolds, scissor lifts and aerial lifts
    • Fall protection at, over and in excavations
    • Struck-by: falling objects, storage, hard hats and tool tethers

  4. Part 4 · Personal fall protection

    • Personal fall arrest systems: anchorages, connectors and lanyards
    • Restraint, positioning, self-retracting lifelines and lifelines
    • Calculating fall distance and choosing an anchorage
    • Prompt rescue planning and suspension time

Credit & certificate

SST card included

Prescribed course

  • Counts as 4 hours toward SST Worker card renewal, Option 1 (with 4-Hour Supported Scaffold User and Refresher).
  • Counts as 4 hours toward SST Worker card renewal, Option 2 (with 2-Hour Mental Health Awareness and 2-Hour Tool Box Talks or Pre-Task Meeting).
  • Counts as 4 hours toward SST Supervisor card renewal, Option 3 (with 8-Hour Site Safety, 2-Hour Mental Health Awareness and 2-Hour Tool Box Talks or Pre-Task Meeting).
  • Does not replace 8-Hour Fall Prevention for a new SST card.

4 hours of SST credit and a certificate of completion. This is awareness-level training, not a license or a competent person designation.

Who it's for

  • SST Worker card holders renewing under Option 1 or Option 2.
  • SST Supervisor card holders renewing under Option 3.
  • Workers whose card expired on or after May 3, 2026, and who are still inside the one-year renewal grace period.

Included in these packages

Take this course on its own, or as part of a package.

Before you buy

Format and schedule
Online and self-paced. Start any time after purchase; no class dates or location.
Certificate and credential
When you finish, Training Directory issues a course certificate.
Identity verification
No identity verification or proctoring is required for this course.

Questions

Can I use this course for a new SST card?

No. A new SST card requires 8-Hour Fall Prevention. The 4-hour course is the refresher used for renewals.

When should I take it?

Finish your refresher training before your card expires, within the year before renewal. You cannot work on site with an expired card.

My card already expired. Can I still renew?

If your card expired on or after May 3, 2026, you can renew up to one year after the expiration date. You cannot work on site during that time. After the year is up, you need a new card with full training.

Do I need to retake OSHA to renew?

No. OSHA does not need to be retaken for an SST card renewal.

Does the course include hands-on practice with equipment?

No. DOB's outline is written for equipment in the room. Online, you see video and image demonstrations of inspecting a harness, lanyard and connectors. Get trained on the specific equipment you will use before you use it on the job.

How is the course graded?

There are knowledge checks after each module and a final exam. The final includes fall distance calculations. You need 70% to pass.

Can I finish faster than 4 hours?

No. Seat time is tracked, and the course cannot be completed in less than its required 4 hours of instruction.

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Ready to start?

Start as soon as your order is confirmed, and work at your own pace.

$150.00