OSHA Rules & Regulations

by Diane M. Calabrese | Published May 2026

 

 

An employer is required to provide a safe workplace. That’s the essence of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, which created OSHA, the administration responsible for formulating and monitoring workplace safety and regulations.

A navigable route to all-things-OSHA is Help for Employers (https://www.osha.gov/employers), which details employer responsibilities, compliance assistance, and state office contacts.

The best efforts to stay on track and adhere to OSHA regulations can be derailed by many factors, especially human nature. No matter how well trained and versed in relevant rules an individual is, a problem at home—sick child to burst water pipe—can cause a loss of focus.

Part of the answer, of course, is consistent training so that correct procedures become rote.

Distraction is not the only foil to compliance. Complacency always looms.

Unfortunately, a very safe workplace can cause some employees to begin to take chances, even ones along the lines of “just this once.” As in, just this once let’s skip eye protection or use a stool instead of a ladder.

Training and more training is the way to combat complacency.

“There is no way to ensure 100 percent compliance,” says Linda Chambers, brand and sales manager at GCE/Soap Warehouse Brand in Norcross, GA. “Nothing I have found works even 50 percent of the time.”

What are some examples of challenges? “Safety posters become invisible,” explains Chambers. “Verbal reminders become annoying, and staff can become hostile to them and the person giving them.”

A just-this-once transgression in a safe workplace does not register with many employees as that significant. For example, the step stool might seem perfectly sturdy and a reasonable way to reach a top shelf just once.

It’s not exactly that employees resist being reminded that they did not follow an OSHA rule. But they may think some feedback is too harsh and outsizes the actual event.

The employer must achieve a difficult balance. “No one wants to use written warnings because you don’t want to lose or fire a good employee just because he or she didn’t use proper PPE [personal protective equipment] all the time,” says Chambers.

“Good workers are too hard to find to have to let one go due to something that most likely would never have caused a dangerous issue or be seen by an enforcement officer,” says Chambers. “I worry about and enforce the bigger issues like improper container segregation, containers left open, and improper use of forklifts or driving vehicles.”

Chambers explains she reserves the strongest feedback for “things that can be dangerous to others” and uses softer feedback for things like discovering an employee who is not wearing ear plugs. Again, employer response to an employee’s health and safety transgression must be balanced.

It may not be as difficult as walking a tightrope, but occasionally maintaining balance feels that way. That’s why efforts to combat complacency—train and train some more—take priority in any workplace.

“Keeping up with and taking the time out for training, even if only to do annual refreshers, is a challenge,” says Chambers. “Another challenge is having staff follow the guidelines and not become complacent. They can have their ear protection hanging around their necks, but they won’t take the second needed to put the protection in before turning on a machine.”

So, is the human factor the most difficult part of meeting all the requirements of OSHA? Even given the copious expectations of OSHA, the answer should probably be a firm “yes.”

 

Abundance of Help

OSHA.gov is the entryway to rules that apply to a particular sector, as well as explanations of the rules themselves. Using a search tool at the website, a business can verify its NAICS [North American Industry Classification System] six-digit designation and then retrieve regulations relevant to it.

For instance, enter “power washing” and retrieve the code 561790 (Other Services to Buildings and Dwellings) and determine the standards that apply. An interesting way to look at the applicable standards is in reverse.

OSHA gives various tallies of frequently cited standards in inspections and the penalties that result. For the period October 2024 through September 2025, the most frequently issued citations (and penalties) were in the categories of fall protection and falling object protection, respiratory protection, hazard communication, training requirements, and vehicle-mounted elevating and rotating work platforms and ladders.

Each of the categories will look familiar to any power washing contractor because they encompass tools used on a routine basis. In addition to specific rules tied to NAICS 561790, there are general industry requirements.

General industry requirements are just that. They cover close to all employers in our industry, whether a contractor, distributor, or manufacturer.

OSHA.gov includes a handy Compliance Assistant Quick Start for General Industry (https://www.osha.gov/complianceassistance/quickstarts/general-industry).

The quick start serves as a refresher for industry veterans who want to assure themselves nothing has been overlooked. It also provides a concise introduction to new entrants to the industry about what’s expected of their companies.

The six major categories listed by the quick-start tool are hazard communication standard, emergency action plan standard, fire safety, exit routes, walking/working surfaces, and medical and first aid. The quick start not only provides links to relevant fact sheets for each header but also gives direct links to relevant portions of the CFR [Code of Federal Regulations].

Let’s take a nugget-level look at each of the six categories. The hazard communication standard requires an employer to ensure that everyone exposed to hazardous chemicals in the workplace knows how to protect themself and communicate about dangers.

The emergency action plan standard requires that employers have an emergency action plan that details what employees should do in case of fire or another emergency. The action plan may only be recommended for certain types of employers, but it’s best to consider it a requirement.

Under the fire safety category, OSHA recommends a fire prevention plan for some employers and mandates it for others. Still, it’s best to consider it a requirement.

All employers must meet requirements for exit routes. The requirement includes meeting expectations for the design and construction of exit routes.

Enclosed stairwells with fireproof doors are a given in the 21^st century. The downside of modern building is the jettisoning of asbestos-based fire retarding materials because of health concerns.

In 2017 OSHA expanded its scope when considering walking and working surfaces. Essentially, its concern broadened from employees falling from an above-ground position to employees falling while walking. It did so after concluding that slip-and-trip hazards resulted in many serious injuries.

Medical and first aid, the sixth broad general industry category, requires that available aid be commensurate with the type of medical situation that’s likely to arise. Among other tools, the category includes a link to a best practices guide (pdf) that reviews the fundamentals of a workplace first aid program.

 

Think First

We all know that standing on a kitchen chair to change a light bulb is a bad idea, one we only entertain because we don’t want to take out the step ladder. OSHA will not come to investigate us at home if we fall and break a body part, but it will investigate an incident in the workplace.

Common sense begins with a commitment to think first and act second. In some settings we can quickly determine the safe approach. Many workplace settings, though, require evaluation (and relevant training) before any work can begin.

For example, a contractor cannot simply decide that respiratory protection is needed (because of dust, mist, fibers, or gases or fumes). The contractor must be versed in the proper use of and certified for certain types of equipment. Moreover, the contractor must have carefully evaluated the respiratory protection. If it’s a disposable mask, does it offer the correct level of barrier to particles and gases?

Eye and face protection (such as face shields), protective clothing, masks and respirators, foot protection, and hand protection (gloves) all fall into the category of PPE. Choice of PPE begins with appraisal of the toxic or corrosive substances that will be in use, how close to the substance an individual will be, and how the cleaning will be accomplished (with hot water and steam requiring additional precautions be taken).

PPE is covered in OSHA standard 1910.132 (Personal Protective Equipment). The standard is one that gets less attention than it deserves because the second part of the expectation involves sanitation.

Even if the employee owns his or her own PPE, the employer is responsible for ensuring it is adequate and properly maintained, including being sanitary. (See standard 1910.132(b).) Thus, if an OSHA inspector finds an employee using a soiled respirator, the employer can be cited.

An employer must not grow weary of training and retraining employees. Training keeps employees alert, if only by causing them to grumble “not again.”

Although there are industries partially exempt from OSHA standards because they are deemed low hazard (e.g., retail service, finance, insurance), most employers in our industry are subject to at least some standards. And unless they have 10 or fewer employees, employers are subject to reporting requirements. Even if measures are recommended rather than required and are not subject to reporting, it is in any company’s best interest to diligently keep safety foremost.