The top OSHA violations of 2018

OSHA revealed its top 10 list of violations during a presentation at the 2018 National Safety Council Congress & Expo. Both workers and employers in Missouri and throughout the country will be familiar with many of the violations on the list. Statistics were compiled between October 2017 through the end of September 2018. There were 7,270 violations regarding a duty to provide fall protection, which put it at the top of the list.

Most of these violations involved roofing and single-family home construction companies, and OSHA says that this type of violation has been the most common for several years. Other violations in the top five include lack of training regarding hazard communication as well as inadequate lockout and tagout procedures.

At the number 10 spot were violations relating to personal protective and lifesaving equipment used on the eyes and face. It was new to the list and took over for electrical wiring methods on the 2018 compilation. There were 1,536 reported eye and face protective equipment violations during the time that data was collected. In addition to fall protection itself, fall protection training was the seventh most reported violation in 2018. Common issues included employees not being trained or not being trained by a competent person. Employers were also cited for failing to certify that an employee was properly trained.

Those who are injured in an accident at work may be forced to miss time to recover from broken bones or strained muscles. In some cases, an injured worker may not be able to go back to work. To help pay medical bills and other expenses, an individual may wish to apply for workers’ compensation benefits. These benefits are designed to pay medical expenses related to the injury as well as pay injured workers a portion of their lost wages.