As subject to The Inflation Adjustment Act, the Department of Labor is required to annually adjust its civil monetary penalties to adjust for inflation, no later than January 15 of each year. Last month, the Federal Register published the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Annual Adjustments for 2020 which has resulted in increases for civil penalties the Department of Labor assesses, including those issued by OSHA. The Cal/OSHA penalties included are based on workplace inspections and potential violations of safety and health standards. The rule is became effective January 15th, 2020 and the increased penalty rates will apply to any penalties assessed after the effective date of the rule.
What does this mean for employers?
Who have open and ongoing OSHA inspections can expect that any citations issued by OSHA after today will reflect the increased penalties.
The new 2020 maximum OSHA penalties are as follows:
Other-than-Serious: $13,494 (increased from $13,260)
Serious: $13,494 (increased from $13,260)
Repeat : $134,937 (increased from $132,589)
Willful: $134,937 (increased from $132,589)