Cal. Code Regs. tit. 8, § 7110
(b) Guards for shafts shall conform to the following standards;
(c) The guards for all shafts shall be kept closed except when necessarily opened to:
(3) Perform other operations that cannot be performed with the guard in place.
At all times when a guard is removed, the employer shall provide other effective means to prevent men or materials from falling into the shaft.