The same violations, every year
OSHA has been publishing its top violations for decades. Another annual list was released last August. 2025 will come around later this year. Except during the pandemic, when breathing and respiration PPE were a much larger concern and many work sites closed, the top citations are generally stable:
| Standard (29 CFR) | Category | Typical Rank | 20-Year Trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1926.501 | Fall Protection | #1 | Ranked #1 for 14 consecutive years (2011–2024). |
| 1910.1200 | Hazard Communication | #2-3 | Always in the top 3; dropped to #5 during COVID. |
| 1926.451 | Scaffolding | #3-5 | Was the #1 violation in the mid-2000s (2005–2010). |
| 1910.134 | Respiratory Protection | #3-7 | Spiked to #2 during 2020–2021 (COVID-19 pandemic). |
| 1926.1053 | Ladders | #3-8 | Ladder use, particularly in construction, has steadily moved up the rankings. |
| 1910.147 | Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) | #5-7 | Permanent fixture; rarely moves out of the middle. |
| 1910.178 | Powered Industrial Trucks | #6-9 | Includes forklifts; consistently cited for training failures. |
| 1910.212 | Machine Guarding | #8-10 | A general industry citation for the last 20+ years. |
| 1926.102 | Eye & Face Protection | #9-10 | Entered the Top 10 in 2018, making this the “newcomer”. |
20-Year Historical Trend: Top OSHA Violations (Rank Snapshot)
Just to see how little has changed, here’s the breakdown of the top citations in 2024, 2014, and 2004:
| Rank | FY 2024 | FY 2014 | FY 2004 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fall Protection | Fall Protection | Scaffolding |
| 2 | Hazard Communication | Hazard Communication | Hazard Communication |
| 3 | Ladders | Scaffolding | Fall Protection |
| 4 | Respiratory Protection | Respiratory Protection | Respiratory Protection |
| 5 | Lockout/Tagout | Lockout/Tagout | Lockout/Tagout |
| 6 | Powered Industrial Trucks | Powered Industrial Trucks | Powered Industrial Trucks |
| 7 | Fall Protection Training | Electrical (Wiring) | Electrical (Wiring) |
| 8 | Scaffolding | Ladders | Machine Guarding |
| 9 | Eye & Face Protection | Electrical (General) | Ladders |
| 10 | Machine Guarding | Machine Guarding | Electrical (General) |
Falls, mostly from ladders, are always high up the list. “Ladders” and “Eye/Face Protection” have slowly crept up the list, likely due to increased enforcement in residential construction and small-scale contracting.
Control of hazardous energy is another common citation. Hazard communication, scaffolding, lockout/tagout, and respiratory protection have shifted around the top 10 violations for years but have roughly remained stable.
Some of this is based on sheer quantity. There are a lot of jobs that require the use of a ladder. Still, year after year, we look at these annual compliance and violation lists and never ask: why do these keep happening? Especially in the face of increased enforcement, training, technology and sensors, and general awareness?
No forklift driver hasn’t seen viral videos of collapsing shelves or pallets.
The myth of the ‘bad worker’ is institutionalized finger-pointing
On the face of it, it’d be easy to think it’s a bad worker. Someone who didn’t pay attention in orientation or works recklessly. “They’re always a little sloppy,” but that’s just finger-pointing.
OSHA citations tend to cluster around work that deviates from a plan.
- Where employees crunched for time or access have to improvise or “Take care of that task real quick.”
- Someone grabs a ladder to clear an obstruction “real quick”, but didn’t take the time to level the ladder surface.
- Someone foregoes a respirator or face mask for one quick spray, sand, or application the supervisor noticed needed doing while walking the floor.
All the policies, binders, manuals, and LMS or OSHA training completion records exist, but all that documentation doesn’t replace functional capability.
And OSHA citations don’t tell us when an employee tried to do the right thing. They don’t show near-misses and the hazards that were narrowly avoided. They don’t capture tradeoffs made under pressure, either.
When a worker climbs scaffolding in high winds to keep a project on track, or a forklift operator works a few extra hours during a rush period, these production pressures normalize deviance from consistent norms.
Supervisors and managers end up appearing ambiguous in their decision-making. Culture starts to slip, and the rules become guidelines, and soon the guidelines become oft-ignored best practices.
OSHA’s top violations might not change much, but your workplace culture can
Avoid normalizing deviance, an overreliance on written plans and underdeveloped decision-making by:
- Training for judgement, not sheer recall
- How to exercise judgment with scenario-based readiness exercises and tabletops
- Designing systems and safety plans that anticipate deviation and actively work against it
- Helping involve leadership at decision points and ensuring accountability
Vantage Point helps industries and commercial enterprises train workers in OSHA 10- and 30-hour courses. In addition to the standard OSHA training programs, VPC modifies courses within guidelines for your workplace. Trainings are conducted on-site and frequently includes walk-throughs, tours, and real-world applications to your facility.
Learn more about VPC’s OSHA Certification and Safety Courses
