OSHA Penalties and How OSHA Inspections Work

OSHA penalties are adjusted for inflation every January. The figures below are the 2025 maximums. Check osha.gov/penalties for the current year's amounts.

Violation types and maximum penalties (2025)

Type	What it means	Maximum penalty (2025)
Serious	A hazard that could cause death or serious physical harm, which the employer knew or should have known about	$16,550 per violation
Other-than-serious	A violation related to safety or health that is unlikely to cause death or serious harm	$16,550 per violation
Willful or repeated	Intentional disregard or plain indifference, or the same violation cited again	$165,514 per violation
Failure to abate	Not correcting a cited violation by the abatement date	$16,550 per day beyond the abatement date

OSHA may reduce penalties based on employer size, good faith, and history of previous violations. Many states run their own OSHA-approved State Plans with their own penalty schedules, which must be at least as effective as federal OSHA.

How OSHA decides where to inspect

1. Imminent danger situations.
2. Severe injuries and fatalities. Employers must report a work-related fatality within 8 hours, and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye within 24 hours (29 CFR 1904.39).
3. Worker complaints and referrals.
4. Targeted inspections, such as National and Local Emphasis Programs for high-hazard industries.
5. Follow-up inspections to verify abatement.

What happens during an inspection

• Opening conference: the compliance officer explains the reason for and scope of the inspection.
• Walkaround: the officer tours the site, observes conditions, takes photos and measurements, and may interview workers.
• Closing conference: the officer discusses apparent violations and possible abatement.

Citations must be issued within six months of the violation occurring.

After you receive a citation

• Post a copy of the citation at or near the place the violation occurred for 3 working days or until it is corrected, whichever is longer.
• You have 15 working days from receipt to file a Notice of Contest. Within that window you can also request an informal conference with the OSHA Area Director, which often leads to reduced penalties or reclassified violations.
• Correct the hazards by the abatement date and certify abatement.

The cheapest citation is the one you never receive. CiteSafe gives your crew a way to check conditions the same way a compliance officer would, before the walkaround.