WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
On January 1, 2024, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) increased penalties for certain violations.
Some of the maximum penalties are going up by as much as $4,983 this year, a smaller increase than in the past. This annual increase is made to be consistent with federal OSHA’s civil penalties.
For citations issued on or after January 1, 2024, the maximum penalties for violations classified as Regulatory, General, Willful, or Repeat are as follows:
The maximum penalty for General and Regulatory violations, including Posting and Recordkeeping violations is $15,873.
The maximum penalty for Willful and Repeat violations is $158,727. The minimum penalty for Willful violations is $11,337.
DEFINITIONS:
REGULATORY VIOLATION is a violation, other than one defined as Serious or General that pertains to permit, posting, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements as established by regulation or statute. For example, failure to obtain permit; failure to post citation, poster; failure to keep required records; failure to report industrial accidents, etc.
GENERAL VIOLATION is a violation which is specifically
Audrianne Adams Lee – Ext. 104 Michelle Brubaker – Ext. 102 Lorraine Calder – Ext. 103
determined not to be of a serious nature but has a relationship to occupational safety and health of employees. Civil penalties for general violations are proposed based on the severity, extent and likelihood of the violation.
Repeat Violation is a violation where the employer has abated or indicated abatement of an earlier violation occurring within the state for which a citation was issued, and upon a later inspection, the Division finds a violation of a substantially similar regulatory requirement and issues a citation within a period of five years immediately following the latest of: (1) the date of the final order affirming the existence of the previous violation cited in the underlying citation; or (2) the date on which the underlying citation became final by operation of law. For violations other than those classified as repeat regulatory, the subsequent violation must involve essentially similar conditions or hazards.
Willful Violation is a violation where evidence shows that the employer committed an intentional and knowing, as contrasted with inadvertent, violation, and the employer is conscious of the fact that what he is doing constitutes a violation of a safety law; or, even though the employer was not consciously violating a safety law, he was aware that an unsafe or hazardous condition existed and made no reasonable effort to eliminate the condition.
If you have questions or need assistance with workplace health and safety programs, you can call Cal/OSHA’s Consultation Services Branch at 800-963-9424 or their local Cal/OSHA Consultation Office or email InfoCons@dir.ca.gov.
NOTE: Cal/OSHA consultants are experts in identifying workplace hazards and making recommendations to eliminate the hazards with the goal of improving workplace safety and health in a cooperative manner.
.
Please reach out to your HR Manager with any questions on the above.
