The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) posted a recap of its fiscal 2019 on Dec. 3, showing that this year included a significant increase in its number of inspections, and a record number of compliance assistance aimed to help employers keep workplaces free of hazards.
Federal OSHA conducted 33,401 inspections in fiscal 2019 — its most since 2015 — with those inspections addressing violations related to hazards including falls, trenching, chemical exposure, silica and more.
OSHA said that this year, it’s various education programs provided a record 1,392,611 workers with training on safety and health requirements — programs such as the OSHA Training Institute Education Centers, Outreach Training Program and Susan Harwood Training Grant Program. In 2019, OSHA’s free On-Site Consultation Program identified 137,885 workplace hazards and protected 3.2 million workers from potential harm, according to the agency.
“OSHA’s efforts — rulemaking, enforcement, compliance assistance and training — are tools to accomplish our mission of safety and health for every worker,” said Loren Sweatt, principal deputy assistant secretary of labor for Occupational Safety and Health. “I am proud of the diligent, hard work of all OSHA personnel who contributed to a memorable year of protecting our nation’s workers.”
