Top OSHA Safety Violations for 2018

OSHA’s Top 10 Lists of Safety Violations for Fiscal 2018

Every year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) publishes lists of the top 10 serious and willful safety violations discovered during its worksite inspections.

OSHA Top Violations

The top 10 serious violations for the fiscal year 2018 include:

1. Fall protection (5,899 violations). Falls from scaffolding, ladders, and overhead platforms are some of the most common causes of workplace injuries and fatalities. Fall protection violations also top the list of top 10 willful violations.
2. Scaffolding (3,059 violations). OSHA requires inspections of scaffolding before each work shift, and employees must be trained to use scaffolding safely.
3. Hazard communication (2,949 violations). Employers have a responsibility to provide information through labeling and safety data sheets regarding the identities and hazards of any chemicals workers are exposed to regularly.
4. Ladders (2,480 violations). OSHA requires employers to provide fall protection to employees using ladders above dangerous equipment and machinery.
5. Hazardous energy (2,384 violations). Also known as lockout/tagout procedures, hazardous energy policies safeguard employees responsible for maintaining and repairing electrical equipment.
6. Respiratory protection (2,044 violations). Respirators protect workers from harmful gases, vapors, and sprays, by removing contaminants from the air or providing clean air from another source.
7. Machine guarding (1,710 violations). Machinery safeguards are essential for protecting workers from amputations, burns, and crushed fingers or hands.
8. Powered industrial trucks (1,548 violations). Workers can be injured when they’re struck by a lift truck or when a forklift is driven off a loading dock. Employers must ensure operators are trained to handle powered industrial trucks safely.
9. Training requirements for fall protection (1,539 violations). It’s mandatory for employers to train workers on the proper usage of fall protection equipment, yet many neglect to do this.
10. Eye and face protection equipment (1,353 violations). OSHA requires employers to provide eye and face protection when needed to protect workers from environmental, chemical, and radiological hazards.

Violations unique to OSHA’s top 10 willful violations list for fiscal 2018 include:

• Grain handling facilities (22 violations). Workers may be injured by falls, amputations caused by grain handling equipment, and fires and explosions due to grain dust accumulation. These violations are in third place on the list of top 10 willful violations.
• Requirements for protective systems (19 violations). Each employee in an excavation area must be protected from cave-ins through the provision of required safety equipment. This violation ranks fourth on the list of top 10 willful violations.
• Mechanical power-transmission apparatus (11 violations). Power-transmission belts that are defective or improperly maintained can seriously injure workers. Failure to maintain and replace these belts is number eight on the list of top 10 willful violations.
• Permit-required confined spaces (10 violations). Many workplaces have confined spaces, and employees working in these locations have an increased risk of injury due to entrapment and restricted airflow. OSHA requires workers to have a permit to enter these spaces, and violations of this requirement rank ninth on the list of top 10 willful violations.

You Need an Attorney

If you were injured due to violations of these or any other safety standards by your employer, you deserve compensation for the harm you suffered. To learn more about what the law offices of Steve M. Lee, P.C., can do for you, visit us on Facebook.