Top 3 OSHA Violations

Each year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) releases its list of top 10 most frequently cited violations. Compiled from various inspections that were carried out in the previous fiscal year, these compilations serve two purposes. Firstly they serve to inform both employers and employees about the most common requirement violations. Secondly, to alert both parties to the quality of and adherence to the safety measures implemented in their respective work environments.

For 2012, OSHA released the list on Oct. 23, at the National Safety Council Congress and Expo in Orlando, Florida. The results were quite similar to those of 2011, with the differences mostly being the rankings. Fall Protection violations ranked first, climbing up from last year’s 3rd place. Hazard Communication violations rose to 2nd place, while Scaffolding violations fell to 3rd.  Below is a brief discussion of these top violations.

• Fall Protection. For 2012, OSHA cited a total of 7,250 Fall Protection violations. The most common of these concern the following:
  • Preventing falls from roofs
  • Failing to secure open sides and edges, and
  • Failing to cover holes.

According to OSHA, falls are the leading cause of death in the construction industry. Because of this, various regulations are in place to implement fall protection requirements.

For instance, when working on a structure more than 7 1/2 feet, on beams taller than 15 feet, or truss-type constructions and on steep roofs, employees are required to have the proper fall protection equipment. Barriers such as guardrails and toe boards should be used whenever necessary. Fences and hole covers also effectively reduce potential fall hazards.

• Hazard Communication. A total of 4,696 violations were listed under Hazard Communication. Most of these violations included:
  • Lacking an adequate written program for hazcom,
  • Failing to provide proper training,
  • Improper labeling or lack thereof, and
  • Lack of Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) or access to them.

The OSHA standard for Hazard Communication was first implemented during the 1980s to lessen the potential risk of hazardous substances found in the workplace. Guidelines and requirements for employee training and handling hazardous materials are included in the regulations. The standard also discussed the need for MSDS, which provide information about the hazardous materials used and tell employees how to handle the material safely. Regulations require that these sheets be present in every workplace that makes use of hazardous materials.

• Scaffolding. Scaffolding violations were cited for a total of 3,814 times this year. Among these were:
  • Sub-par scaffold construction,
  • Insufficient access to scaffolding surfaces, and
  • Inadequate guardrails.

Scaffolding is an important feature of construction projects, which allows employees to access high places of the structure on which they are working. However, if safety requirements are not followed, scaffolding becomes an additional workplace hazard.

One important regulation requires that the scaffolds should be adequate enough to support four times the maximum intended load. This rule reduces the possibility of any breaks in the frame that could lead to employees losing their balance and footing.

OSHA’s list of violations is among the numerous resources that help to promote the safety procedures implemented in a given facility. Even the most routine processes are part of the system designed to protect workers, and so safeguard the well-being of the whole facility. And, as the list demonstrates, ignoring these requirements jeopardizes the safety of employees, and puts the entire facility operation under penalty.

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