Does OSHA call for a site-specific safety plan?
Not by that name. The request comes from owners, general contractors and contracts, and the plan answers a rule that does exist: the employer initiates and maintains the programs needed to comply with part 1926 (29 CFR 1926.20(b)(1)), and those programs provide for frequent and regular inspections of the job sites, materials and equipment by competent persons the employer designates (1926.20(b)(2)). Each worker is also instructed in recognizing and avoiding the unsafe conditions of the work (1926.21(b)(2)), which the orientation section records. The 29 CFR 1926.20 page has the full text.
What goes in the plan
| Section | What it holds |
|---|---|
| Project | Name, address, owner, general contractor, your role and scope, dates, crew size, revision |
| Emergency information | Hospital and phone, 911 availability, assembly point, first aid kits and person, extinguishers, contacts |
| Written programs | Yes, No or N/A for each program part 1926 may call for, with its paragraph |
| Activities and hazards | Each activity, its hazards, its controls, the standard and the competent person |
| Inspections | What is inspected, by whom, how often, where the record is kept |
| Subcontractors | Each company, its scope, its contact and the date SDS and labels were exchanged |
| Orientation | Each worker's name, company, date and signature |
The written programs a site may need
The plan is a hub: each program keeps its own document and its own rule. Hazard communication needs a written program with the list of hazardous chemicals (29 CFR 1910.1200(e)(1), through 1926.59). Construction work has a fire protection program for all its phases (1926.150(a)(1)). An emergency action plan is written where a part 1926 standard calls for one (1926.35(b)). Work covered by the silica standard has a written exposure control plan (1926.1153(g)(1)). A fall protection plan exists only for leading edge, precast or residential work where conventional protection is shown infeasible (1926.502(k)), and the free fall protection plan builder writes it. The free emergency action plan builder writes the emergency plan, and the article on one emergency plan per jobsite explains why a plan borrowed from another site fails.
Competent persons, orientation and subcontractors
The inspections section names who inspects what; the free competent person designation letter puts each designation in writing. The orientation sign-off follows the new hire orientation checklist for construction, and the emergency action plan guide covers the emergency section in depth. With several employers on one site, the multi-employer responsibility matrix sorts out who does what.
What OSHA cited most on construction programs in FY2025
| Paragraph | What it covers | FY2025 citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1926.20(b)(2) | Frequent and regular inspections by competent persons | 965 |
| 1926.20(b)(1) | Programs initiated and maintained to comply with part 1926 | 412 |
| 1926.20(b)(4) | Only employees qualified by training or experience operate equipment | 22 |
| 1926.20(f)(2) | Training standards: each employee trained, a violation per employee | 7 |
| 1926.20(b)(3) | Unsafe equipment tagged, locked out or removed | 7 |
| 1926.20(f)(1) | PPE standards: a violation per employee not protected | 6 |
| 1926.21(b)(2) | Instruction in recognizing and avoiding unsafe conditions | 545 |
| 1926.21(b)(1) | Use of the training programs the Secretary provides | 5 |
| 1926.21(b)(3) | Instruction on poisons, caustics and other harmful substances | 2 |
| 1926.21(b)(5) | Instruction on flammable liquids, gases and toxic materials | 2 |
| 1926.21(b)(6)(i) | Former paragraph, removed from the standard in 2015, still in FY2025 citation data | 1 |
| 1926.21(a) | Training programs run by the Secretary | 1 |
1926.20: 1,423 citations in FY2025 at 1,181 inspections, 1,368 of them at construction sites (NAICS 23). 1926.21: 556 citations in FY2025 at 551 inspections, 488 of them at construction sites (NAICS 23). Citation items issued Oct 1, 2024 to Sep 30, 2025, counted by HazComFast on U.S. Department of Labor enforcement data (extracted Oct 13, 2026). Inspected establishments, not the whole industry.
Questions about site-specific safety plans
Does OSHA require a site-specific safety plan?
No federal OSHA standard calls for a document by that name. Owners, general contractors and contracts ask for one. What part 1926 does ask is that the employer initiate and maintain the programs needed to comply (29 CFR 1926.20(b)(1)), with frequent and regular inspections of the job sites, materials and equipment by competent persons the employer designates (1926.20(b)(2)). A site-specific plan is a practical way to show both.
What should a site-specific safety plan include?
The project and the people, the emergency details (hospital, assembly point, first aid, extinguishers, contacts), the written programs the work calls for, the activities with their hazards and controls, the competent persons and inspections, the subcontractors, and an orientation sign-off. This template has a section for each.
Which written programs might a construction site need?
Depending on the work: a written hazard communication program with the list of hazardous chemicals (29 CFR 1910.1200(e)(1), applied through 1926.59); a fire protection program for all phases of the work (1926.150(a)(1)); an emergency action plan where a part 1926 standard calls for one (1926.35); a written silica exposure control plan where the silica standard covers the work (1926.1153(g)(1)); and a fall protection plan only for leading edge, precast or residential work under 1926.502(k).
Do I need a fall protection plan for every site?
No. A written fall protection plan under 29 CFR 1926.502(k) is an option only for employees doing leading edge work, precast concrete erection or residential construction who can show conventional fall protection is infeasible or creates a greater hazard. Everywhere else, the site uses conventional fall protection.
What medical arrangements go in the plan?
Provisions for prompt medical attention in case of serious injury are made before the project starts (29 CFR 1926.50(b)). Where no infirmary, clinic, hospital or physician is reasonably accessible, a person with a valid first-aid certificate is available at the worksite (1926.50(c)), and where 911 is not available, the numbers of physicians, hospitals or ambulances are conspicuously posted (1926.50(f)(1)).
Who signs the site-specific safety plan?
OSHA sets no signature for it. Most contractors have the safety manager or the project manager approve it, and have each worker sign that they attended the site orientation. The template has both.
Sources and verification
- 29 CFR 1926.20, General safety and health provisions
- 29 CFR 1926.50, Medical services and first aid
- 29 CFR 1926.150, Fire protection
- 29 CFR 1926.502, Fall protection systems criteria and practices
Verified against the eCFR on Oct 20, 2026 (title 29 current to Oct 16, 2026). State Plan states enforce their own standards, which may go further than the federal ones. Not legal advice.
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