The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) increased the penalties for workplace safety violations effective January 16 to maintain their deterrent effect and promote compliance with the law.
The regulator’s maximum penalties for serious and other-than-serious violations rose 3.24% from $15,625 per violation to $16,131 per violation. It raised the maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations from $156,259 per violation to $161,323 per violation.
The Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act requires the Department of Labor to review its civil financial penalties to factor in cost-of-living adjustments no later than January 15 of each calendar year.
For this year, January 15 fell on a federal holiday. Therefore, new OSHA penalty amounts will become effective January 16, 2024.