Preliminary figures for the 2026 fiscal year show 1,725 violations of OSHA’s scaffolding standard, 29 CFR 1926.451, recorded up to August 31.
The National Safety Council announced the figures this week at the Safety Congress & Expo in Indianapolis.
Scaffolding ranked sixth in the final FY2025 list, meaning it has moved up two places this year. Fall Protection – General Requirements remains at number one, with 4,041 violations. Hazard Communication was second with 1,961, followed by Lockout/Tagout with 1,863.
Scaffolding came fourth, ahead of ladders with 1,659 violations.
Higher ranking does not mean more violations
The higher ranking does not mean scaffolding violations are rising. The National Safety Council said every standard in this year’s Top 10 had received fewer citations than the previous year.
The latest figures are also preliminary. They cover the period from October 1, 2025 to August 31, 2026, while last year’s figures were based on the full fiscal year.
Final FY2025 figures showed 2,286 scaffolding violations. That means the two totals should not be compared directly.
What the new figures do show is that scaffolding has moved higher in OSHA’s overall ranking compared with other commonly cited safety standards. OSHA’s scaffolding rules cover a wide range of areas including platforms, foundations, access, inspections, fall protection and the overall strength and stability of a scaffold.
The rules also require scaffolds to be checked by a competent person before each work shift and after anything that could affect their safety.
Prent Cline, acting deputy director of OSHA’s Directorate of Enforcement Programs, said employers need to keep identifying hazards and putting them right. “It takes vigilance on the worksites to identify the hazards and get them corrected,” he said.
The figures do not only relate to specialist scaffold contractors. OSHA’s scaffolding rules apply across construction, including employers and workers in trades such as masonry, roofing, framing and siding where scaffolds are used.
A fuller breakdown of OSHA’s FY2026 Top 10 is expected later this year.
