Top 10 OSHA Violations of 2021: Some Movement in List, Citation Numbers Drop Again

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OSHA has announced the Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards for fiscal year 2021, based on preliminary data from Oct. 1, 2020 through Sept. 30, 2021.

Citation Counts Continue to Decline

While the most-cited standards haven’t changed since 2018, the total number of citations the list represents has decreased significantly every year, from 33,250 in 2018 to 21,092 in 2021. Citations in 2021 were 13% lower than 2020 numbers. The 2021 citations increased for just 2 standards (Fall Protection Training and Eye and Face Protection) vs. 2020.

The announcement was made by Acting OSHA Director Patrick Kapust at National Safety Council’s 2021 Safety Congress & Expo.

The top 10 OSHA violations of 2021:

  1. Fall Protection, general requirements (29 CFR 1926.501): 5,295 violations (-2% vs. 2020)
  2. Respiratory Protection, general industry (29 CFR 1910.134): 2,527 violations (-5% vs. 2020)
  3. Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053): 2,026 (-5% vs. 2020)
  4. Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451): 1,948 violations (-23% vs. 2020)
  5. Hazard Communication Standard, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.1200): 1,947 violations (-39% vs. 2020)
  6. Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout), general requirements (29 CFR 1910.147): 1,698 violations (-18% vs. 2020)
  7. Fall Protection – Training Requirements (29 CFR 1926.503): 1,666 violations (+3% vs. 2020)
  8. Eye and Face Protection (29 CFR 1926.102): 1,452 violations (+6% vs. 2020)
  9. Powered Industrial Trucks, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.178): 1,420 violations (-27% vs. 2020)
  10. Machinery and Machine Guard, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.212): 1,113 violations (-15% vs. 2020)

This list of the top 10 osha violations of 2021 shows what OSHA is watching, which makes it a good place to start when reviewing safety needs of your business or making a safety plan. For example, fall  protection is commonly cited on construction sites and wherever roofing work is being performed, and a citation for fall protection training could easily accompany it.

The top 10 OSHA violations of 2020:

  1. Fall Protection, construction (29 CFR 1926.501): 5,424 violations
  2. Hazard Communication Standard, general industry (29 CFR 1910.1200): 3,199
  3. Respiratory Protection, general industry (29 CFR 1910.134): 2,649
  4. Scaffolding, general requirements, construction (29 CFR 1926.451): 2,538
  5. Ladders, construction (29 CFR 1926.1053): 2,129
  6. Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout), general industry (29 CFR 1910.147): 2,065
  7. Powered Industrial Trucks, general industry (29 CFR 1910.178): 1,932
  8. Fall Protection–Training Requirements (29 CFR 1926.503): 1,621
  9. Eye and Face Protection (29 CFR 1926.102): 1,369
  10. Machinery and Machine Guarding, general requirements (29 CFR 1910.212): 1,313