Page 12 - OHS, October 2024

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OSHA’s Top 10 Most Cited Standards for FY 2024
Let’s review each standard on this year’s list as well as OSHA’s guidelines and requirements.
BY ROBERT YANIZ JR.
Most Cited Standards at the 2024 National Safety Council Safety
In keeping with tradition, OSHA was on hand to reveal its Top 10
Congress & Expo. At the event, Scott Ketcham, director of the di-
rectorate of enforcement programs for OSHA, led the session pre-
senting the preliminary data for fi scal year 2024 (FY24). Although this
data was not fi nal and is subject to change, let’s take a look at OSHA’s
Top 10 Most Frequently Cited Standards for Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24).
10) Machine Guarding
As in previous years, Machine Guarding rounds out the OSHA top
10, though the number of cited violations dropped from 1,644 in
FY23 to 1,541 cited during FY24. Th e OSHA standard 1910.212
outlines the requirements for machinery and machine guarding,
including machines requiring guards such as power presses, por-
table power tools, guillotine cutters and. Use of such machinery
can lead to hazards associated with “rotating parts” and “sparks.”
OSHA defi nes machine guards as “barriers which prevent ac-
cess to danger areas.” Th is critical safety equipment—categorized
as “fi xed, interlocked, adjustable, and self-adjusting”—aims to
shield employees from dangers posed by machinery. However, the
absence or misuse of these tools can result in OSHA violations, as
was likely the case with the incidents in this year’s report.
9) Personal Protective and Lifesaving Equipment—Eye and
Face Protection
Still at number 9 on the OHSA top 10, Eye and Face Protection
holds that position, with 1,814 violations cited in FY24. Th at’s a
notable drop from the 2,074 violations reported last year. OSHA
Standard 1926.102 mandates employers to provide suitable eye
and face protection for workers exposed to hazards such as “fl ying
particles, molten metal, liquid chemicals, acids or caustic liquids,
chemical gases or vapors or potentially injurious light radiation”
that can cause severe injuries or blindness. In some environments,
employers must provide side protection.
OSHA requires eye and face protection to align with one of the
three designated American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
standards. For employees wearing prescription lenses, employers
must ensure that eye protection accommodates these prescriptions
or fi ts comfortably over prescription glasses. Comfort, fi t and ease
of cleaning are continually shown to be key to compliance, and
more and more employers are fi nally beginning to account for it.
8) Scaffolding
Dropping from number 4 last year to the eighth spot in FY24, Scaf-
folding saw the number of cited violations dip signifi cantly from
2,859 to 1,873 in FY24. OSHA standard 29 CFR 1926.451 outlines
requirements for workers operating on scaff olds. For instance,
every scaff old and its components must be able to bear its own
weight and at least four times the maximum intended load without
collapsing.
OSHA also mandates that the platform should have a minimum
width of 18 inches and must be equipped with either a guardrail or
a personal fall arrest system to protect workers from falling. How-
ever, guardrails aren’t always required. For instance, guardrails aren’t
necessary when the gap between the edge of the platform and the
working surface is less than 14 inches, ensuring that workers are ad-
equately protected. Th ese standards emphasize structural integrity
and protective measures to prevent scaff olding-related accidents.
12 Occupational Health & Safety | OCTOBER 2024 www.ohsonline.com