Penalties for OSHA violations increase

The U.S. Department of Labor is increasing Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties for violations based on cost-of-living adjustments for 2023. 

OSHA’s maximum fines for serious and other-than-serious violations will increase from $14,502 per violation to $15,625 per violation. The maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations will increase from $145,027 per violation to $156,259 per violation. 

In 2015, Congress passed the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act to advance the effectiveness of civil monetary penalties and to maintain their deterrent effect. Under the Act, agencies are required to publish “catch-up” rules that adjust the level of civil monetary penalties and make subsequent annual adjustments for inflation no later than Jan. 15 of each year. This year, Jan. 15 falls on a Sunday and Jan. 16 is a federal holiday. Therefore, new OSHA penalty amounts will become effective Jan. 17, 2023.