Frequently Asked Questions     En Español

Question: What are worker rights under the Occupational Safety and Health Act?

Workers are entitled to working conditions that do not pose a risk of serious harm. To help assure a safe and healthful workplace, OSHA also provides workers with the right to:

  • Receive information and training about hazards, methods to prevent harm, and the OSHA standards that apply to their workplace. The training must be in a language that workers can understand;
  • Get copies of test results done to find hazards in the workplace;
  • Review records of work-related injuries and illnesses;
  • Get copies of their medical records;
  • Ask OSHA to inspect their workplace; and
  • Use their rights under the law free from retaliation and discrimination.

See OSHA's Worker Page for more information.

Question: What are employers' responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act?

Employers have the responsibility to provide a safe workplace. Employers MUST provide their employees with a workplace that does not have serious hazards and follow all OSHA safety and health standards. Employers must find and correct safety and health problems. OSHA further requires that employers try to eliminate or reduce hazards first by making changes in working conditions rather than just relying on masks, gloves, ear plugs or other types of personal protective equipment (PPE). Switching to safer chemicals, enclosing processes to trap harmful fumes, or using ventilation systems to clean the air are examples of effective ways to get rid of or minimize risks.

For more information see the Employer Responsibilities page.

Question: Can I be punished or discriminated against for exercising my rights under the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act?

No. The OSH Act protects workers who complain to their employer, OSHA or other government agencies about unsafe or unhealthful working conditions in the workplace or environmental problems. You cannot be transferred, denied a raise, have your hours reduced, be fired, or punished in any other way because you used any right afforded to you under the OSH Act. Help is available from OSHA for whistleblowers.

See OSHA's Worker Page for more information.

Question: Where can I find OSHA Compliance Assistance Products and Resources for Small Businesses?

OSHA provides resources to help employers prevent occupational injuries and illnesses, comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and learn about OSHA's cooperative programs. Find more information about Compliance Assistance and about OSHA's free On-site Consultation Services.

Question: Do I need to put an OSHA poster in my workplace? Where can I get a FREE copy?

All covered employers are required to display -- and keep displayed -- a poster prepared by the Department of Labor* informing employees of the protections of the Occupational Safety and Health Act P.L. 91-596, December 29, 1970 and its amendments. (* Federal government agencies must use the Federal Agency Poster.) Employers do not need to replace previous versions of the poster. The OSHA Job Safety and Health: It's the Law poster (OSHA 3165) is available for free from the OSHA Office of Publications.

Download the OSHA poster or order the poster from the OSHA Office of Publications. Clicking "order now" will place the item in a virtual cart on the right hand of the screen.

More information about the OSHA poster.

Question: Where can I find information on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) injury and illness recordkeeping requirements?

Information on OSHA's recordkeeping requirements can be found on OSHA's Recordkeeping page.

Recordkeeping forms are available.

Question: What can I do if I think my workplace is unsafe?

If you believe working conditions are unsafe or unhealthful, we recommend that you bring the conditions to your employer's attention, if possible.

Workers, or their representatives, may file a complaint and ask OSHA to inspect their workplace if they believe there is a serious hazard or their employer is not following OSHA standards. A worker can tell OSHA not to let an employer know who filed the complaint. It is against the Act for an employer to fire, demote, transfer or discriminate in any way against a worker for filing a complaint or using other OSHA rights.

You can file a complaint online; download the form [En Espanol*] and mail or fax it to the nearest OSHA office; or call 1-800-321-OSHA (6742). Most complaints filed online may be resolved informally over the phone with your employer. Written complaints that are signed by a worker or worker representative and submitted to the closest OSHA office are more likely to result in onsite OSHA inspections.

When the OSHA inspector arrives, workers and their representatives have the right to:

  • Go to the inspection.
  • Talk privately with the OSHA inspector.
  • Be part of meetings with the inspector and the employer before and after the inspection is conducted.

Where there is no union or employee representative, the OSHA inspector must talk confidentially with a reasonable number of workers during the course of the investigation.

An inspector who finds violations of OSHA standards or serious hazards may issue citations and fines. A citation includes the methods an employer must use to fix a problem and the date by when the corrective actions must be completed. Workers only have the right to challenge the deadline for when a problem must be resolved. Employers, on the other hand, have the right to contest whether there is a violation or any other part of the citation. Workers or their representatives must notify OSHA that they want to be involved in the appeals process if the employer challenges a citation.

If you send in a complaint requesting an OSHA inspection, you have the right to find out the results of the OSHA inspection and request a review if OSHA decides not to issue citations.

See OSHA's Worker Page for more information.

Question: Am I covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)?

Most employees in the nation come under OSHA's jurisdiction. OSHA covers private sector employers and employees in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and other U.S. jurisdictions either directly through Federal OSHA or through an OSHA-approved state program. Employees who work for state and local governments are not covered by federal OSHA, but have OSH Act protections if they work in those states that have an OSHA-approved state program. Four additional states and one U.S. territory have OSHA approved plans that cover public sector employees only. State-run health and safety programs must be at least as effective as the Federal OSHA program. To find the contact information for the OSHA Federal or State Program office nearest you, see the Regional and Area Offices map.

Question: What is an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard?

OSHA standards are rules that describe the methods that employers must use to protect their employees from hazards. There are OSHA standards for Construction work, Maritime operations, and General Industry, which is the set that applies to most worksites. These standards limit the amount of hazardous chemicals workers can be exposed to, require the use of certain safe practices and equipment, and require employers to monitor hazards and keep records of workplace injuries and illnesses. Examples of OSHA standards include requirements to: provide fall protection, prevent trenching cave-ins, prevent infectious diseases, ensure that workers safely enter confined spaces, prevent exposure to harmful substances like asbestos, put guards on machines, provide respirators or other safety equipment, and provide training for certain dangerous jobs.

Employers must also comply with the General Duty Clause of the OSH Act, which requires employers to keep their workplace free of serious recognized hazards. This clause is generally cited when no OSHA standard applies to the hazard.

Question: Who is covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER)?

The Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response Standard (HAZWOPER) applies to five distinct groups of employers and their employees. This includes any employees who are exposed or potentially exposed to hazardous substances -- including hazardous waste -- and who are engaged in one of the following operations as specified by 1910.120(a)(1)(i-v) and 1926.65(a)(1)(i-v):

  • clean-up operations -- required by a governmental body, whether federal, state, local, or other involving hazardous substances -- that are conducted at uncontrolled hazardous waste sites;
  • corrective actions involving clean-up operations at sites covered by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA) as amended (42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.);
  • voluntary clean-up operations at sites recognized by federal, state, local, or other governmental body as uncontrolled hazardous waste sites;
  • operations involving hazardous wastes that are conducted at treatment, storage, and disposal facilities regulated by Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations Parts 264 and 265 pursuant to RCRA, or by agencies under agreement with U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to implement RCRA regulations; and
  • emergency response operations for releases of, or substantial threats of release of, hazardous substances regardless of the location of the hazard.

For more information, see OSHA's Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about the HAZWOPER standard.

Question: Where can I find information on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) regulations?

OSHA regulations are available at http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owasrch.search_form?p_doc_type=STANDARDS&p_toc_level=0&p_keyvalue=

Question: What is the most commonly cited workplace hazard in my industry?

You'll need to know your employer's Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code. Once you know your four-digit code, visit OSHA's Frequently Cited OSHA Standards page, enter your SIC code and view the information for last year.

Question: Has my employer ever been inspected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)?

You can research your employer's inspection history through OSHA's Establishment Search. Type in the name of your company and choose the dates you want to cover.

Question: What materials does the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have of interest to workers?

OSHA publishes a variety of publications on a range of subjects. See OSHA Publications for a complete listing of agency-printed materials or to order publications online. Also available are training materials produced by grantees of a Susan Harwood Training Grant.

Question: Where can I find Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) information on ergonomics or "musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)"?

OSHA information on ergonomics or musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) can be found on OSHA's Ergonomics web page.

Question: Does the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) provide information on job hazards?

OSHA provides information to help workers, employers, and safety and health professionals reduce occupational injuries and illnesses. Find information on bloodborne pathogens, machine guarding, agricultural operations or fall protection, for example.

Question: Where can I find Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) information on Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories (NRTL)?

OSHA's Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) Program recognizes private sector organizations as NRTLs, authorized to determine that specific equipment and materials ("products") meet safety requirements in OSHA standards.

A list of Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories and additional OSHA information can be found on OSHA's web page for NRTLs.

Question: How many work-related injuries, illnesses and deaths occur each year in the United States?

An average of 12 Americans are killed on the job every single day of the year. In addition, tens of thousands die every year from workplace disease and over 3.3 million workers each year are seriously injured on the job.

Please see OSHA's Workplace Injury, Illness and Fatality Statistics page for data by state, industry and demographic. Links to the Bureau of Labor Statistics are also available.

Question: What are the penalties for violating an OSHA standard?

OSHA's penalty policy, including minimums, maximums and factors considered when assessing the penalty, can be found in Chapter Six, page 161, of the Field Operations Manual*.

Question: How many inspectors does OSHA have?

OSHA is a small agency; with its state partners, OSHA has approximately 2,200 inspectors responsible for the health and safety of more than 130 million workers, employed at more than 8 million workplaces across the country – which translates to about one compliance officer for every 59,000 workers.

* Accessibility Assistance: Contact OSHA's Office of Communications at 202-693-1999 for assistance accessing PDF materials.