Course Comparison
Supervisor vs. Competent Person
Supervisor training covers authorizing a single entry. Competent Person training covers owning the entire confined space program.
Confined Space Supervisor
Focused on the entry supervisor's duties for a given entry: verifying conditions, authorizing the permit, and directing emergency response if something changes.
- Per-entry authorization and oversight
- Does not include site-wide space classification
- Does not include building a written program
Competent Person
Program-level training: identifying and classifying every confined space on a site, building the written permit program, planning rescue capability, and maintaining recordkeeping.
- Site-wide hazard classification
- Written program development
- Rescue & emergency preparedness planning
The deciding question: is this person authorizing individual entries within an existing program, or building and owning the program itself, classifying spaces, writing procedures, and planning rescue? The latter needs Competent Person training. Note that OSHA defines a Competent Person by knowledge, experience, hazard-recognition ability, and authority to take corrective action; training supports this role, but the employer must formally designate the Competent Person for the specific worksite.
Choosing between them
Two different levels of responsibility
The entry supervisor manages one entry at a time: verifying the permit, the tests, the equipment and the rescue arrangements, then overseeing the work and canceling the permit. The competent person in construction works at the program level: before work starts, they identify every confined space where employees may work and determine which are permit spaces, through evaluation and testing as necessary (1926.1203).
| Responsibility | Entry supervisor | Competent person (construction) |
|---|---|---|
| Identify and classify spaces on the site | Uses the classification | Performs the evaluation |
| Written permit space program | Follows it | Builds and maintains it, with the employer |
| Individual entry permits | Signs, oversees and cancels | Reviews the system, not every entry |
| Rescue planning | Verifies rescue is available for the entry | Plans rescue capability for the site |
| Program review | Notes problems on the permit | Reviews canceled permits and audits the program |
What "competent person" means to OSHA
In construction, OSHA defines a competent person as someone capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions that are unsanitary, hazardous or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them (29 CFR 1926.32(f)). Knowledge alone isn't enough; the employer has to give that person the authority to act. A certificate of completion documents training, but the employer makes the designation.
Building a team that covers every level
Most construction sites with permit spaces need at least three layers: trained entrants and attendants, at least one trained entry supervisor for each crew or shift, and a designated competent person who owns the program. Smaller employers often combine roles, which is allowed as long as each person is trained for every role they perform. See the decision guide for a role-by-role matrix.
Still Not Sure?
Use the full decision guide to match your role to a course.