5.1 OSHA Administration, Recordkeeping, and the General Duty Clause

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) enforces workplace safety under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Construction work is governed by 29 CFR 1926 (Safety and Health Regulations for Construction). General industry rules in 29 CFR 1910 apply only where 1926 is silent and 1910 is referenced. On the NASCLA exam, when a question concerns a jobsite hazard, the controlling standard is almost always a 1926 Subpart, not 1910.

The General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1), requires each employer to furnish a workplace "free from recognized hazards" likely to cause death or serious physical harm. It is OSHA's catch-all citation tool used when no specific standard addresses a hazard. Section 5(a)(2) requires compliance with specific standards. Memorize: 5(a)(1) = recognized hazards with no specific rule; 5(a)(2) = the written standards themselves.

OSHA may inspect without advance notice. Giving advance notice of an inspection is a federal crime. Inspection priority order is a frequent trap. Memorize this ranking:

Note that imminent danger ranks above a fatality — the logic is preventing the next death outranks investigating one that occurred.

Reporting timelines are tested heavily and changed in 2015. Report a work-related fatality within 8 hours. Report any in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye within 24 hours. The old "3 or more hospitalized" threshold is obsolete — a single hospitalization now triggers the 24-hour report. Reports go to the OSHA Area Office, the 1-800-321-OSHA line, or the online portal.

Recordkeeping (29 CFR 1904): Employers with more than 10 employees must keep injury/illness logs unless in a low-hazard exempt industry (construction is NOT exempt). The three forms: Form 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses), Form 300A (Annual Summary), and Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report). Form 300A must be posted from February 1 to April 30 each year, even if there were zero recordable cases. Records are retained 5 years.

A case is recordable if it involves death, days away from work, restricted work/transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, loss of consciousness, or a significant diagnosed injury/illness. First aid (e.g., bandages, non-prescription medication at OTC dosage, single hot/cold compress) is NOT recordable. Distinguishing first aid from medical treatment is a classic exam item.

Penalty categories (post-inflation adjustment): Other-than-Serious and Serious violations carry a maximum near $16,000+ per violation; Willful and Repeat violations reach roughly $160,000+ per violation. Exact dollar figures adjust annually for inflation, so the exam tests the relative severity — Willful/Repeat are roughly 10x a Serious violation. A Willful violation is intentional or with plain indifference; Repeat means a substantially similar prior citation.

Worker rights under the Act: employees may file a complaint, request an inspection, review the OSHA log, and receive copies of their own medical/exposure records — all without retaliation (Section 11(c)). The OSHA poster ("Job Safety and Health: It's the Law") must be displayed where notices are customarily posted.

Citations, Penalties, and Inspection Priority

OSHA classifies violations as Other-than-Serious, Serious, Willful, Repeat, and Failure-to-Abate, each with escalating penalties (willful/repeat carry the highest fines, and willful violations causing a death can bring criminal referral). OSHA's inspection priority order is: imminent danger → fatality/catastrophe (report a fatality within 8 hours; in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye within 24 hours) → worker complaints → referrals → programmed (high-hazard) inspections. An employer may request an informal conference to contest a citation.

Recordkeeping — 300/300A/301

Employers with more than 10 employees (outside low-hazard exempt industries) keep injury records on the OSHA 300 Log, summarize on the 300A (posted February 1 to April 30), and detail each case on the 301 incident report. A case is recordable if it involves death, days away, restricted duty/transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, or loss of consciousness. Records are retained 5 years. First-aid-only cases are not recordable.

The General Duty Clause

Section 5(a)(1) — the General Duty Clause — requires employers to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards likely to cause death or serious harm even when no specific standard exists. OSHA cites it for hazards like extreme heat where no dedicated 1926 standard applies. The construction standards live in 29 CFR Part 1926 (general industry is 1910); tab 1926 by subpart letter for fast open-book look-up.

Common Exam Traps

• Trap: Report every injury to OSHA within 8 hours. Only a fatality is 8 hours; hospitalization/amputation/eye loss is 24 hours.
• Trap: First aid is recordable. It is not — only treatment beyond first aid.
• Trap: Construction uses Part 1910. Construction is Part 1926.
• Trap: No standard = no liability. The General Duty Clause still applies.

Competent Person, Training, and Posters

Many 1926 standards hinge on the competent person — someone capable of identifying hazards and authorized to take prompt corrective action (distinct from a qualified person, who has the degree/knowledge/experience to solve the problem). Employers must train workers on the hazards they face and post the "Job Safety and Health: It's the Law" poster. Tabbing the definitions in 1926.32 speeds open-book look-up, because exam items frequently turn on whether a competent or qualified person is required for a given task.