We’ve compiled the list of Top 10 Most Frequently Cited OSHA Standards for Construction for fiscal year 2018 (October 2017 through September 2018) and there aren’t many changes from last year’s list.

Every year, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) releases the Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards from the previous fiscal year. The goal is to inform the public of the standards most commonly cited for violations and allow employers to focus their efforts on those standards to make workplaces safer for employees.

With dozens of industries covered, providing a list that covers all industries doesn’t provide much insight into which standards are most cited for a specific industry, like construction. OSHA also has separate sets of standards with different rules to control safety concerns for the construction, agriculture, and maritime industries.

Fortunately, OSHA has a website where you can search the Frequently Cited OSHA Standards by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Codes as well as establishment size and by federal or state jurisdiction.

Below is the Top 10 Frequently Cited OSHA Standards for Construction for the 2018 fiscal year. Included are the title, standard number, the top 10 ranking from the previous year and the number of citations issued.

1.
Subpart Title: Fall Protection
Standard Number: 1926.501
Title: Duty to have fall protection.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 1
Number of Citations: 5,627

2.
Subpart Title: Scaffolds
Standard Number: 1926.451
Title: General requirements.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 2
Number of Citations: 2,402

3.
Subpart Title: Ladders
Standard Number: 1926.1053
Title: Ladders.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 3
Number of Citations: 2,093

4.
Subpart Title: Fall Protection
Standard Number: 1926.503
Title: Training requirements.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 4
Number of Citations: 1,518

5.
Subpart Title: Personal Protective and Life Saving Equipment
Standard Number: 1926.102
Title: Eye and face protection.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 5
Number of Citations: 1,215

6.
Subpart Title: Personal Protective and Life Saving Equipment
Standard Number: 1926.100
Title: Head protection.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 6
Number of Citations: 746

7.
Subpart Title: General Safety and Health Provisions
Standard Number: 1926.20
Title: General safety and health provisions.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 9
Number of Citations: 745

8.
Subpart Title: Scaffolds
Standard Number: 1926.453
Title: Aerial lifts.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 8
Number of Citations: 691

9.
Subpart Title: Toxic and Hazardous Substances
Standard Number: 1910.1200
Title: Hazard Communication.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 7
Number of Citations: 670

10.
Subpart Title: Fall Protection
Standard Number: 1926.502
Title: Fall protection systems criteria and practices.
FY2017 Top 10 Rank: 10
Number of Citations: 634

(Note: The rankings and number of citations issued are current as of October 15, 2018.)

There wasn’t much movement in the list this year. All the standards cited from last year’s list remained in the top 10. Over half of the top 10 list deals with fall protection or working at height with scaffolding, aerial lifts, and ladders. This shouldn’t be surprising since falls remain the number one cause of worker deaths in the construction industry and one of the leading causes of accident injuries for construction workers.

Be sure to check out our 10 Construction Site Safety Tips that address how to protect workers from hazards created when these standards are violated.