An important consideration for the agency is to

get hazardous conditions corrected as soon as

possible so that no further injuries or deaths occur

and the workplace complies with all applicable

safety and health standards. Therefore, the

agency often settles citations and penalties when

this will speed abatement. This may lead to

reduced penalties in exchange for prompt correction of hazards and other measures that help

reduce risk to other workers and provide a safer

workplace. 

OSHA Assistance to Family Members

It is a national loss when a worker dies on the job.

As safety and health professionals, the employees

at OSHA care about all workers and share in the

loss of each one who loses his or her life in the

workplace. But no one feels that loss more than

the grieving members of that worker’s family.

OSHA is committed to working with families 

to provide an accounting of the circumstances

surrounding the deaths of workers and to doing

everything possible to prevent future tragedies.

Each OSHA Area and Regional office gives special

consideration to the families and friends of workers who die as the result of workplace accidents

and illnesses. 

Agency representatives contact the family of the

worker who died to let them know of the agency’s

OSHA Fatality Inspections

OSHA regulations require employers to report

deaths on the job within eight hours. Employers

may call their local office or may use the agency’s

toll-free number: 800-321-OSHA (6742).

The agency then investigates the circumstances of

the death, usually on-site, to determine the cause of

death and if violations of the OSH Act are involved.

(Exceptions are when the matter is clearly outside

OSHA’s jurisdiction, such as over-the-road traffic

accidents and some apparent sudden deaths on the

job such as heart attacks or strokes.) Depending on

the nature and complexity of the incident, an OSHA

investigation can take as long as six months. 

If the agency determines that the employer has

failed to follow safety and health requirements, it

issues citations and proposed civil penalties. The

proposed penalties are based on the statutory factors of employer size, gravity of the violation,

good faith of the employer and the history of previous violations. The maximum penalty that can

be assessed is $7,000 for each serious violation or

$70,000 for a repeated or willful violation. 

Therefore, OSHA penalties do not correspond to

or reflect the value of a worker’s life or the cost of

an injury or illness. Although oftentimes this

seems unfair, OSH Act penalties are primarily

designed to deter future violations.

FactSheet

OSHA’s Role When a Worker Dies 

On the Job

Occupational fatalities in the U.S. have fallen by 10 percent over the past decade. 

In 2002, fatality rates in American workplaces dropped by 6.6 percent to the lowest

level ever recorded. In fact, on-the-job deaths have been cut in half since 1970, even

though U.S. employment has more than doubled. That is the good news, but even

one fatality is one too many.

Each day more than 15 American workers fail to return home to their loved ones.

That is totally unacceptable. OSHA, along with safety and health professionals

around the Nation, is working with employers and employees to move toward zero

deaths on the job. And the agency will not be satisfied until every worker in

America goes home safe and sound each day.
investigation and to arrange to provide further

information as it becomes available. Investigators

take into account relevant information that family

members may provide concerning their loved

one’s working conditions and death. 

OSHA’s administrator also sends a letter of condolence acknowledging, "We realize the results of

this investigation are very important to you, so 

we will let you know about our findings as soon

as the investigation is completed." The letter

includes contact information for the office 

handling the inspection. Family members may

then request a copy of all citations, subsequent

settlement agreements, or Review Commission

decisions as soon as these are available.

The death of a worker leads to a very troubling

and stressful time for his or her family. While

OSHA is doing everything possible to provide

information to families as soon as it becomes

available, the agency must carefully follow procedures that will enable it to take appropriate legal

action. In accordance with the Act, the civil actions

that OSHA can bring are based solely on employers’ violations of safety and health requirements

and not on the consequences of these violations. 

This is one in a series of informational fact sheets highlighting OSHA programs, policies or 

standards. It does not impose any new compliance requirements. For a comprehensive list of 

compliance requirements of OSHA standards or regulations, refer to Title 29 of the Code of Federal

Regulations. This information will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request.

The voice phone is (202) 693-1999; teletypewriter (TTY) number: (877) 889-5627.

Criminal Prosecution of Willful Deaths

The OSH Act also provides that where OSHA can

document that an employer willfully violated an

OSHA standard and that violation caused the

death of a worker, the matter may be referred to

the Justice Department for consideration for criminal prosecution. Any criminal prosecution that the

Department of Justice pursues is usually in addition to civil citations and penalties.

Criminal referral is one enforcement tool that

OSHA uses. But many cases in which willful citations are issued as a result of fatality investigations do not merit criminal prosecution. The basic

reason is that each element of a criminal violation,

including willfulness, must be proven to a jury

beyond a reasonable doubt. By contrast, to have

a civil citation upheld, OSHA may meet a lesser

standard of proof—preponderance of the evidence. The Department of Labor does not refer a

case that OSHA and the Office of the Solicitor do

not believe can meet the higher burden of proof

required for acceptance by the Department of

Justice for consideration for criminal prosecution.

U.S. Department of Labor

www.osha.gov

(800) 321-OSHA

Think Safety!

For more complete information: