A Look at OSHA’s Top 10 Safety Violations

Workers’ compensation claims can result directly from worksite conditions, whether in construction, manufacturing, distribution, office or other environments. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) tracks violations of safety and health standards, which can lead to workers’ comp claims.

OSHA tracks the top 10 workplace safety standards violations for each fiscal year, providing a window into which safety issues are getting the most enforcement attention ― and thus might be in need of employer attention.

For the 2021 fiscal year (Oct. 1, 2020, through Aug. 31, 2021), OSHA reported the most common violations, as published by the National Safety Council. During the ongoing pandemic of fiscal year 2021, OSHA used remote inspections and complaint responses.

This information is valuable for independent agents to share with their workers’ compensation clients, along with a perspective of the issues involved based on information from the National Safety’s Council’s Safety + Health Magazine as well as OSHA. Helping workers’ compensation policyholders to better their workplace safety can lower their experience modifications.

OSHA regulators advise employers to review work processes in light of the top safety violations to determine the hazards in their workplace. They noted that top ways for employers to avoid safety issues are job hazard analyses, employees’ reporting of hazards and unsafe conditions, and employee training.

OSHA offers small and mid-sized firms confidential, no-cost assistance with identifying and fixing hazards through OSHA’s consultation program at osha.gov/consultation. This program is separate from OSHA’s enforcement program and does not result in citations.