This resource center contains materials for host employers and contractors. A “host employer” is an employer that hires one or more contractors to work at the employer’s worksite(s) or perform services. A contractor is a person or company that performs specific activities or services for the host employer, such as additions, alteration, maintenance, and repair. Contractors hire subcontractors.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), contract workers accounted for 16 percent of all work-related fatal injuries in 2012. The most common causes of workplace fatalities for contractors include:

• Falls to a lower level;
• Struck by object or equipment; and
• Pedestrian vehicular incidents.

Federal OSHA and state rules apply to both host employers and to contractors. OSHA can cite either a host employer or a contractor, or both, for a violation.

OSHA’s multi-employer citation policy defines responsibility for safety in situations where more than one employer is involved. Several specific standards, including process safety management, hazard communication, lockout/tagout, confined spaces, HAZWOPER, and certain construction standards, specifically address multiemployer situations.