Maximum OSHA fines are getting bumped up 1.76% as of Jan. 16 to adjust for inflation.
The maximum fine for willful and repeat violations is going up $2,339 to $134,937, while serious and other-than serious fines will rise $234 to $13,494.
This is the annual change under the Inflation Adjustment Act of 2015, which requires the Department of Labor to adjust monetary penalties no later than Jan. 15 each year.
The DOL is required to calculate this adjustment based on the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers. Annual adjustments are based on the percent change between the October index preceding the date of adjustment and the prior year’s October index.
Increased penalties apply to those assessed after the effective date of the rule, so penalties assessed after Jan. 15, 2020, whose violations occurred after Nov. 2, 2015, will be affected by the higher penalty amounts, according to the DOL announcement.