OSHA’s top violations

Every year, OSHA compiles statistics on violations to its standards. Following is information on the top standards cited by OSHA for general industry employers during fiscal year (FY) 2024. (The fiscal year runs from October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024.)

In cases where a particular hazard is not addressed by any OSHA standard, the General Duty Clause may be cited. The General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, requires employers to provide employees with a place of employment which is free of recognized hazards that may cause death or serious physical harm. Section 5(a)(1) citations must meet the requirements outlined in OSHA’s Field Operations Manual (FOM) Chapter 4.III. General Duty Requirements.

The following elements are necessary to prove a violation of the General Duty Clause:

• The employer failed to keep the workplace free of a hazard to which employees of that employer were exposed;
• The hazard was recognized;
• The hazard was causing or was likely to cause death or serious physical harm; and
• There was a feasible and useful method to correct the hazard.

A general duty citation must involve both the presence of a serious hazard and exposure of the cited employer's own employees.

The Top 10 most frequently cited general industry standards for FY2024

1. Hazard Communication — 1910.1200
2. Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout) — 1910.147
3. Respiratory Protection — 1910.134
4. Powered Industrial Trucks — 1910.178
5. Machine Guarding — 1910.212
6. Electrical - Wiring — 1910.305
7. Electrical - General — 1910.303
8. Personal Protective Equipment - General — 1910.132
9. Respirable Crystalline Silica — 1910.1053
10. Portable Fire Extinguishers — 1910.157