OSHA Law & Regulations

Welcome to our page on OSHA's Law and Regulations. This page contains links to all current OSHA standards, provides information on the rulemaking process used to develop workplace health and safety standards, and includes links to all Federal Register notices that are currently open for comment. This page also provides links to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act) and other relevant laws. Finally, this page includes resources to explore the Federal Register, the Code of Federal Regulations, and RegInfo.gov the federal government's public portal for all agency regulatory information.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
is an agency of the United States Dept. of Labor.
The image above is the The Frances Perkins Building
in Washington, D.C.

A Brief Background on OSHA and its Health and safety standards

The Occupational Safety and Health Act grants OSHA the authority to issue workplace health and safety regulations. These regulations include limits on hazardous chemical exposure, employee access to hazard information, requirements for the use of personal protective equipment, and requirements to prevent falls and hazards from operating dangerous equipment.

OSHA’s current Construction, General Industry, Maritime and Agriculture standards are designed to protect workers from a wide range of serious hazards. Examples of OSHA standards include requirements for employers to: provide fall protection such as a safety harness/line or guardrails; prevent trenching cave-ins; prevent exposure to some infectious diseases; ensure the safety of workers who enter confined spaces; prevent exposure to harmful chemicals; put guards on dangerous machines; provide respirators or other safety equipment; and provide training for certain dangerous jobs in a language and vocabulary workers can understand.

Employers must also comply with the General Duty Clause of the OSH Act. This clause requires employers to keep their workplaces free of serious recognized hazards and is generally cited when no specific OSHA standard applies to the hazard.

Find an OSHA standard:

• General Industry
• Construction
• Maritime
• Agriculture
• Recordkeeping
• State Plans
• All