It’s been a long-standing question for motor carriers. Who has authority over the workplace safety of its commercial drivers — the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) or the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)?

The answer is both. When drivers are on the road, they are under the authority of the FMCSA, but employers are still subject to OSHA’s General Duty Clause.

Understanding OSHA’s General Duty Clause

The General Duty Clause (Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act) requires employers to provide a safe and healthful workplace. Employers must protect employees from recognized workplace hazards, even if there’s no OSHA standard for the situation or if hazards still exist after compliance with a standard.

Bottom line: Your drivers are under the clause even when in and around your vehicle, not just at job sites.

OSHA’s Role in Enforcement and Penalties

OSHA utilizes the clause in its penalty and enforcement actions. The violation can potentially cost employers up to $16,550 per violation. Many of the general duty clause citations are the result of ergonomic and heat stress hazards.

The clause was the third most cited OSHA violation for trucking companies from October 2023 through September 2024. The average fine for trucking companies was $12,466.

Proactive Steps to Avoid OSHA Violations

Employers can avoid violating the general duty clause by making good-faith efforts to correct existing workplace hazards and to identify and address new hazards as they appear.

Consider the following proactive measures to help protect motor carrier employees, including truck drivers:

• Regularly review your accident and injury records. Are there patterns or areas for concern?

• Investigate every accident or injury in the workplace. Is there a specific cause? Is there a specific action needed to prevent the accident or injury from recurring?

• Conduct job hazard analyses (JHA) on a regular basis. Have you identified specific hazards associated with every job? Do you continue to identify new job hazards?

• Document your training efforts. Do you conduct periodic retraining as necessary?

In addition, consider establishing an employee safety committee in the workplace. And even if you have met the “letter of the law,” step back and critically assess whether the process might still be unsafe.

How to Conduct a Job Hazard Analysis (JHA)

A job hazard analysis is a technique that focuses on job tasks to identify hazards before they occur. It uses the relationship between the worker, the task, the tools, and the work environment.

JHA development involves bringing in the employees to break down their jobs into steps. A step occurs when there is a change in motion or position, or a new tool is used.

Ideally, after you identify uncontrolled hazards, you will take steps to eliminate or reduce them to an acceptable risk level. An example might be using personal protective equipment when loading or unloading a truck.

The JHA should be reviewed periodically.

In addition to a scheduled review, it should be looked at when the steps in the job change or deviate from a previously documented JHA.

Key Takeaway: Beyond FMCSA Compliance

Workplace safety for drivers is more than just following FMCSA rules and industry best practices to avoid commercial vehicle crashes. 

Each step or motion of the driver’s job should be examined for hazards that can cause injury or illness. These general risks will not be audited by the FMCSA but by OSHA.