The Occupational Safety and Health Administration revealed its most frequently cited workplace safety standards for fiscal year 2023, with the top citation likely coming as no surprise to those in the roofing industry.

Eric Harbin, OSHA Region 6 administrator, presented the preliminary data for "OSHA's Top 10" during the 2023 National Safety Council's Safety Congress & Expo, the world's largest annual gathering of safety professionals.

"Fall Protection – General Requirements" remains at the top of the list for the 13th year in a row, followed by "Hazard Communication" and "Ladders."

"Although incredible advancements are made in safety each year, we continue to see many of the same types of violations appear on OSHA's Top 10 list," said Lorraine Martin, NSC president and CEO. "As a safety community, we must come together to acknowledge these persistent trends and identify solutions to better protect workers."

The Top 10 most frequently cited workplace safety standards for FY 2023, which ended Sept. 30, are:

• Fall Protection – General Requirements (1926.501): 7,271 violations
• Hazard Communication (1910.1200): 3,213
• Ladders (1926.1053): 2,978
• Scaffolding (1926.451): 2,859
• Powered Industrial Trucks (1910.178): 2,561
• Lockout/Tagout (1910.147): 2,554
• Respiratory Protection (1910.134): 2,481
• Fall Protection – Training Requirements (1926.503): 2,112
• Personal Protective and Lifesaving Equipment – Eye and Face Protection (1926.102): 2,074
• Machine Guarding (1910.212): 1,644

According to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, of the 123 fatal incidents that took place in 2021, 99 of them, or 80%, were due to a fall. In 2021, nearly one in five workplace deaths occurred in the construction industry, and over a third of those were due to falls, slips and trips.