For general industry employees: keep exit routes clear, recognize exit doors that must open, read exit signs and lighting, and spot and report exit route problems before an emergency.
Based on OSHA 29 CFR 1910.36 and 1910.37 (exit routes, general industry) · about 4 min read
Need proof of training? The full course (15 min) adds practice questions, a job scenario, the final quiz and a certificate your employer can verify.
A workplace must have at least two exit routes, located as far apart as practical, so if fire or smoke blocks one you can use the other. A single exit route is permitted where the number of employees, building size, occupancy or layout means all employees would be able to evacuate safely. Know where your exit routes are.
Nothing in the way
Exit routes must be free and unobstructed. No materials or equipment may be placed in an exit route, not even temporarily. That includes pallets, carts, boxes and floor scrubbers.
The way to an exit must not pass through a room that can be locked, such as a bathroom, or lead into a dead-end corridor.
Exit routes must be kept free of explosive or highly flammable furnishings or decorations.
The exit access must be at least 28 inches wide at all points, and nothing sticking into the route may make it narrower than the minimum.
If you see something blocking an exit route, move it if you safely can and report it.
You must be able to open an exit route door from the inside at all times without keys, tools or special knowledge. A panic bar that locks only from the outside is allowed on exit discharge doors.
Exit route doors must be free of any device or alarm that could restrict emergency use if it fails.
The only exception: mental, penal or correctional facilities, and only with supervisors continuously on duty and a plan to get occupants out in an emergency.
Fire doors
An opening into an exit is protected by a self-closing fire door that stays closed or closes automatically when the alarm sounds. Do not prop or wedge it open.
Door type and swing
A side-hinged door connects any room to an exit route.
That door must swing out in the direction of exit travel if the room is designed for more than 50 people or is a high hazard area.
An exit door that is chained, padlocked or needs a key to open from the inside is a serious hazard. Report it right away.
Each exit route must be lighted well enough that a person with normal vision can see along it.
Each exit must be clearly visible and marked by a sign reading "Exit."
Exit route doors must be free of decorations or signs that hide them.
Where the way to the exit is not obvious, direction signs must be posted, and the line of sight to an exit sign must be clearly visible at all times. Do not stack stock or hang banners that block it.
A door or passage that could be mistaken for an exit must be marked "Not an Exit" or similar, or have a sign showing its actual use, such as closet.
Each exit sign must be illuminated to a surface value of at least five foot-candles by a reliable light source and be distinctive in color. Self-luminous or electroluminescent signs with a minimum luminance surface value of at least .06 footlamberts are permitted.
The word "Exit" must be in plainly legible letters not less than six inches high, with principal strokes not less than three-fourths of an inch wide.
Report a dark exit sign, a burned-out light along the route, or a sign that is hidden.
Safeguards that protect you in an emergency, such as sprinkler systems, alarm systems, fire doors and exit lighting, must be in proper working order at all times.
Your employer must install and maintain an operable employee alarm system with a distinctive signal for fire or other emergencies, unless employees can promptly see or smell a fire or other hazard in time to be adequately warned.
During repairs or alterations
You must not occupy the workplace unless the required exit routes are available and existing fire protection is maintained, or alternate fire protection giving an equivalent level of safety is provided.
You must not be exposed to hazards from flammable or explosive substances or equipment used in the work that go beyond normal conditions or would block your way out.
If a contractor's work closes off an exit or a sprinkler line, ask your supervisor what the alternate route and protection are before you keep working there.
Fact-checked against the regulation text on October 09, 2026. This certificate records completion of awareness training based on OSHA 29 CFR 1910.36 and 1910.37. It is not an OSHA card or license. Those sections set exit route requirements and do not contain a training requirement; the employer must keep exit routes free and unobstructed, keep emergency safeguards in proper working order, and install and maintain an operable employee alarm system. Where an OSHA standard requires an emergency action plan, 29 CFR 1910.38 also requires your employer to designate and train employees to assist in a safe and orderly evacuation of other employees, and to review the plan with each employee covered by it when the plan is developed or the employee is initially assigned to a job, when the employee's responsibilities under the plan change, and when the plan is changed.
This guide explains the rule in plain words. Always read the regulation itself and your employer's site-specific procedures.