OSHA Rules

OSHA Rules: What Do Employers Need to Know?

Every employer needs to be aware of the rules set forth by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and how these rules apply to the workplace. Here is an overview of OSHA rules.

OSHA Rules, or Standards

OSHA is the agency responsible for enforcing the OSH Act. OSHA was created to…

• Create the rules (called “standards”) for workplace safety and health.
• Enforce the standards through inspections, tests, and measurements.
• Punish the violation of those standards through penalties ranging from fines to imprisonment.
• Develop safety and health education, training, and information programs for employers and employees.

OSHA Rules Form the Cornerstone

OSHA rules—the criteria employers are required to meet—form the cornerstone of the agency’s workplace safety and health program. For example, mechanical and electrical hazards are in the safety category, and chemicals and ionizing radiation are in the health category.

A number of OSHA rules are specific to certain industries, such as general industry, construction, shipbuilding, marine terminals, and agriculture. The general industry standard applies to the widest range of business activities, and is often cross-referenced in the industry-specific standards. Therefore, the general industry OSHA rules are predominantly cited and described in this section.

How OSHA Rules Are Enforced

OSHA conducts inspections of workplaces to identify violations of its rules. Violations can lead to citations, penalties, and in cases where a willful violation results in an employee death, prison sentences. OSHA breaks its rules violations into the following categories:

• Other-than-Serious Violations of OSHA rules have a direct relationship to job safety and health. However, these OSHA rule violations probably would not cause death or serious physical harm. OSHA may propose a penalty of up to $7,000 for each other-than-serious violation.
• Serious Violations of OSHA rules are those where there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result and that the employer knew, or should have known, about the hazard. OSHA may propose a mandatory penalty of up to $7,000 for each serious violation of its rules.
• Willful Violations of OSHA rules are defined as violations that the employer intentionally and knowingly commits or violations that the employer commits with plain indifference to the law. Willful violations carry penalties of $5,000 to $70,000.
• Repeat Violations of OSHA rules are violations where, upon reinspection, a substantially similar violation is found. Repeated violations can bring penalties of up to $70,000.

Failure to abate a prior violation of OSHA rules may result in civil penalties of up to $7,000 per day for each day the violation continues beyond the prescribed abatement date.