OSHA Reveals Top 10 Most Cited Violations for 2019

Fall protection most frequently cited workplace safety violation

September 12, 2019

The U.S. National Safety Council (NSC) and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced the preliminary Top 10 most frequently cited workplace safety violations for fiscal year 2019.

With more than 6,000 reported violations, “Fall Protection – General Requirements” tops this year’s list for the ninth consecutive year followed by “Hazard Communication” at nearly 3,700 cited violations. Meanwhile, “Eye and Face Protection,” a newcomer to last year’s list, remains in the No. 10 spot with just over 1,400 violations.

Based on preliminary figures as of August 15, the top 10 violations for 2019 are:

1. Fall Protection – General Requirements — 6,010

2. Hazard Communication — 3,671

3. Scaffolding — 2,813

4. Lockout/Tagout — 2,606

5. Respiratory Protection — 2,450

6. Ladders — 2,345

7. Powered Industrial Trucks — 2,093

8. Fall Protection – Training Requirements — 1,773

9. Machine Guarding — 1,743

10. Eye and Face Protection — 1,411.

The list was presented as part of the NSC 2019 Congress & Expo in San Diego this week. A more in-depth look at the top 10 violations for 2019 will be published in the December edition of Safety+Health magazine, a NSC publication.

Latest Articles

Bryan Mangum
November 26, 2025 Sponsored by Spartan Chemical Co.

Protected: Spartan Chemical Company: Your Partner in Tackling Dirt, Damage, and Demand

November 25, 2025 Fikru Aligaz

Best Practices for Contractor Oversight

November 24, 2025 Jeff Cross

Proposals: From AI Draft to Human Win

Sponsored Articles

Bryan Mangum
November 26, 2025 Sponsored by Spartan Chemical Co.

Protected: Spartan Chemical Company: Your Partner in Tackling Dirt, Damage, and Demand

November 20, 2025 Sponsored by Kikkoman Biochemifa Company

The Clean Test Showdown: Lumitester Smart vs Conventional Methods

November 20, 2025 Sponsored by Lysol Pro Solutions

Protected: The Next Evolution of Clean! Lysol Air Sanitizer for Modern Facilities

Recent News

dollar and pennies

Portland, Maine, Votes to Increase Minimum Wage

Nearly Half of 2026 Centers of Excellence for Convention Centers are ISSA GBAC STAR Accredited

WHO to Cut Thousands of Jobs in 2026