On January 14, the U.S. Department of Labor announced changes to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) civil penalty amounts based on inflation for 2025. 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 January 15 of each year.
The maximum OSHA penalties for serious and other-than-serious violations will increase from $16,131 to $16,550 per violation. The maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations will increase from $161,323 to $165,514 per violation. The new OSHA penalty amounts went into effect on January 15, and only apply to penalties assessed after this date.
For additional details, visit OSHA’s Penalties page and read the final rule.
If you have any questions, please contact Kevin Cannon or Nazia Shah.