Fall Protection Once Again Tops OSHA’s Most Cited Safety Violations

by David Flaherty | 8 October 2025 2:06 pm

A worker fastening fall protection equipment, the most cited safety standard of the OSHA — For the 15th straight year, Fall Protect – General Requirements was the most cited safety standard of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration[2] (OSHA) has announced its most frequently cited workplace safety standards for 2025, with Fall Protection – General Requirements topping the list for the 15^thstraight year.

The preliminary data, revealed during the 2025 National Safety Council (NSC) Safety Congress & Expo—the world’s largest annual gathering of safety professionals—highlights persistent compliance issues and the need for stronger safety efforts across industries.

The Top 10 most frequently cited workplace safety standards are:

1. Fall Protection – General Requirements[3]: 5,914 violations

2. Hazard Communication: 2,546 violations

3. Ladders: 2,405 violations

4. Lockout/Tagout: 2,177 violations

5. Respiratory Protection: 1,953 violations

6. Fall Protection – Training Requirements: 1,907 violations

7. Scaffolding: 1,905 violations

8. Powered Industrial Trucks: 1,826 violations

9. Personal Protective and Lifesaving Equipment – Eye and Face Protection: 1,665 violations

10. Machine Guarding: 1,239 violations

“While progress has been made in many workplaces, the consistency in citation rankings year after year signals there is more work ahead,” said Lorraine Martin, NSC CEO. “The safety community must intensify our efforts to better protect workers and save lives. We can do this through robust training, updated metrics, high-hazard identification, and control implementation, coupled with employee engagement and leadership accountability.”

A more in-depth analysis of the Top 10 violations for fiscal year 2025 will be published in the December edition of Safety+Health magazine, a NSC publication.

Endnotes:

[Image]: https://www.metalconstructionnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/GettyImages-1251201323.jpg
Occupational Safety and Health Administration: https://www.metalconstructionnews.com/?s=OSHA
Fall Protection – General Requirements: http://www.osha.gov/fall-protection

Source URL: https://www.metalconstructionnews.com/news/osha-2025-cited-safety-standards/