OSHA Releases Top 10 Most-Cited Workplace Safety Standards -- Occupational Health & Safety

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OSHA Releases Top 10 Most-Cited Workplace Safety Standards

Preliminary data include 4,041 general fall protection violations, the highest total among the 10 standards.

By Danielle Naidu
Sep 15, 2026

Fall Protection - General Requirements remained OSHA's most frequently cited workplace safety standard in fiscal year 2026, leading the agency's preliminary Top 10 list for the 16th consecutive year.

OSHA announced the rankings during the 2026 NSC Safety Congress & Expo in Indianapolis. The preliminary figures are based on inspections conducted during fiscal 2026.

The 10 most frequently cited standards were:

Fall Protection - General Requirements (1926.501): 4,041 violations
Hazard Communication (1910.1200): 1,961 violations
Lockout/Tagout (1910.147): 1,863 violations
Scaffolding (1926.451): 1,725 violations
Ladders (1926.1053): 1,659 violations
Respiratory Protection (1910.134): 1,608 violations
Powered Industrial Trucks (1910.178): 1,379 violations
Fall Protection - Training Requirements (1926.503): 1,273 violations
Eye and Face Protection (1926.102): 1,120 violations
Machine Guarding (1910.212): 1,072 violations

Each category recorded fewer citations than during the previous year. A more detailed analysis of the fiscal 2026 findings is scheduled for the December edition of Safety+Health magazine.

About the Author

Danielle Naidu is assistant editor for Security Today, Campus Security Today, Occupational Health & Safety and Environmental Protection Online.

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