The Department of Labor announces changes to the OSHA civil penalty amounts based on cost-of-living adjustments for 2024.

On January 11, the Department of Labor announced changes to the OSHA civil penalty amounts based on cost-of-living adjustments for 2024. In 2015, Congress passed legislation to increase civil monetary penalties as a deterrent to violating the agency’s safety and health standards and/or regulations. As such, 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 January 15 of each year.

OSHA’s maximum penalties for serious and other-than-serious violations will increase from $15,625 per violation to $16,131 per violation. The maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations will increase from $156,259 per violation to $161,323 per violation. Because January 15 fell on a federal holiday, the new OSHA penalty amounts became effective January 16. The increases only apply to penalties assessed after January 15.

For more information, please contact Kevin Cannon at [email protected] or Nazia Shah at [email protected].