Fall Protection—General Requirements has been the top OSHA violation for 16 consecutive years, indicating persistent safety challenges.

Four of the top 10 violations are directly related to falls, which are the second leading cause of workplace fatalities after transportation incidents.

OSHA's annual report serves as a critical tool for employers to identify safety gaps and implement effective safeguards to protect workers.

The National Safety Council and other safety organizations are teaming up with OSHA to develop resources, training and practical solutions focused on preventing serious injuries and fatalities.

Through the agency’s newly formed National Serious Injury and Fatality Prevention Alliance, announced Sept. 30, members intend to help employers identify and control high-risk hazards that can lead to SIFs.

Along with OSHA and NSC, the alliance includes the American Industrial Hygiene Association, the American Society of Safety Professionals and the University of Colorado’s Construction Safety Research Alliance.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is urging employers to prepare their workplaces for potential opioid overdoses, including by keeping medications such as naloxone readily available and training employees to recognize and respond to an overdose.

On Sept. 24, the Department of Labor (DOL) released new OSHA guidance aimed at helping employers and workers respond quickly to opioid-related emergencies. The fact sheet, Opioid Overdose Rescue with Reversal Medications, recommends treating overdose medications much like other workplace emergency equipment, with supplies stored in visible and easily accessible locations.

Workers in Oregon can use free state resources to learn about job hazards, understand their safety rights and raise concerns with Oregon OSHA.

A worker guide explains common hazards and employer responsibilities under state law. It also lists organizations and agencies that can provide assistance. The guide is also available online, and workers can request printed copies from Oregon OSHA.

The agency also provides online training on fall protection, controlling hazardous energy, personal protective equipment and safety committees. Its website includes information on filing a complaint, protections against retaliation and resources for young workers. Some materials are available in multiple languages.

Recently, the CDC issued new guidance for viral respiratory infections. It now addresses COVID-19 alongside influenza, RSV, and other viral respiratory infections. 

This is a positive change for long term care facilities, reducing unnecessary investigations, duplicate paperwork, and confusion about OSHA recordkeeping, while maintaining appropriate protections for employees and residents. 

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently renewed its National Emphasis Program (NEP) for warehouses and distribution centers.

The new NEP replaces the agency’s July 13, 2023, directive. Significant changes in the new directive include:

Removing coverage of high-injury-rate retail establishments;
Removing mandatory screening requirements for ergonomic and heat hazards;
Extending the NEP’s expiration date to five years from the July 31 effective date;

Workers across Southern California are facing extreme heat as the National Weather Service has issued Extreme Heat Warnings prompting Cal/OSHA to remind employers of required heat-safety measures.

The warnings cover Los Angeles, Ventura, Santa Barbara, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Temperatures are expected to reach up to 112 degrees in some areas, with temperatures as high as 113 degrees possible in the Coachella Valley.

Under Cal/OSHA's Heat Illness Prevention Standards, employers must protect workers from heat illness in both indoor and outdoor workplaces. Indoor employers must take protective measures when temperatures reach 82 degrees, including providing water, rest and access to cool-down areas.

Oregon OSHA has proposed a new workplace violence prevention rule to align Oregon OSHA regulations with statutory changes addressing violence in healthcare settings. Specifically, the rule would implement provisions of Senate Bill 537, enacted in 2025, which imposes workplace violence prevention requirements on specified healthcare employers. The proposed rule addresses covered employers’ obligation to conduct periodic security and safety assessments to identify workplace violence hazards, develop and implement a workplace violence prevention and protection program, and provide workplace violence prevention and protection training annually.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration does not have any specific standards addressing outdoor or indoor heat exposure, according to a Congressional Research Service (CRS) report updated on August 18. Instead, OSHA relies on a general enforcement tool to cite employers for heat-related violations.

Workers in construction, agriculture, bakeries, warehouses, and steel mills may be exposed to heat conditions that can result in heat stroke, organ failure, and chronic kidney disease. In 2024, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 48 employment-related deaths due to environmental heat exposure, above the 42-year average of 42 deaths annually between 2011 and 2024.