OSHA announces Top 10 violations

For the 15^th consecutive year, fall protection for construction topped OSHA’s list of violations. On September 16, Eric Harbin, regional administrator for OSHA’s Dallas Region, made the announcement at the National Safety Council conference in Denver. The preliminary list reflects data from October 1, 2024, to August 12, 2025.

During this time period, there were 5,914 recorded fall protection (construction) violations, down from 7,271 in fiscal year 2024. The standards that round out the list remain unchanged, with a shift in some of the rankings.

1. Fall protection in construction work — 1926.501
2. Hazard communication — 1910.1200
3. Ladders in construction work — 1926.1053
4. Lockout/tagout — 1910.147
5. Respiratory protection — 1910.134
6. Training on fall protection in construction — 1926.503
7. Scaffolding in construction work — 1926.451
8. Powered industrial trucks — 1910.178
9. Eye and face protection in construction — 1926.102
10. Machine guarding — 1910.212

Is there a common theme?

A look at the top 10 list gives you an idea of where inspectors are focused and provides a starting point to examine how your company’s compliance program measures up.

While there are trouble spots unique to each standard, training is one area in which OSHA finds violations across general industry and construction. The lockout/tagout standard has three different levels of training, depending on employees’ duties and whether they are considered “authorized,” “affected,” or “other” under 1910.147. Authorized employees need the most training, other employees the least.

Training plays a major role in hazard communication (HazCom). Employees with exposure or potential exposure to hazardous chemicals must be trained prior to their initial exposure to a hazardous chemical and whenever new chemical hazards are introduced.

The powered industrial truck (PIT) standard requires employers to train operators on all the types of PIT equipment they operate. Employers often fail to provide equipment-specific training and instead allow workers with only forklift training to operate other types of PITs.

OSHA also has been cracking down on training on fall protection in construction. Training must be provided to all employees who might be exposed to fall hazards, and it must both enable employees to recognize the hazards of falling and understand how to minimize these hazards.

In all instances, training must be provided in a format and language that employees understand. And keep in mind that OSHA requires temporary employees to have the same training as any other employees if they are exposed to the same hazards.