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The 2022-2027 OSHA Warehouse Safety Program: What Employers Should Know
November 10, 2022
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Categories: Blogs, Ergonomics, Manufacturing, OSHA, Material Handling, Efficiency, Industry Knowledge Base, Management, Safety
In 2020, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that the injury rate in warehousing was significantly higher than the average for all industries: 4.8 injuries per 100 workers in warehousing and storage, versus 2.7 per 100 for all industries combined. In an effort to improve warehouse safety and bring down these injury rates, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced a five-year initiative beginning in August 2022. It’s called the Regional Emphasis Program (REP) for Warehousing Operation. 
This program combines education and outreach with an aggressive schedule of site inspections within OSHA’s Region 3. What does that mean for warehouse operators within the REP’s coverage area — and beyond? Here’s what employers need to know about OSHA’s latest warehouse safety program.
Who’s Affected by OSHA’s 2022-2027 Warehouse Safety Initiative
The program will run in OSHA’s Region 3, encompassing five states — Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia — plus the District of Columbia. It’s scheduled for August 2022 through August 2027, with an option to extend it even longer. If the program is successful, it may be replicated in other Regions, so warehouse operators across the nation are paying close attention.
As part of the program, OSHA will conduct comprehensive safety and health inspections of warehouses, storage areas (indoors and out), and distribution yards. OSHA’s Area Offices will compile inspection lists of facilities in these areas:
- General warehousing and storage
- Refrigerated warehousing and storage
- Food and beverage manufacturing
- Grocery retail trade
- Wholesale trade for meat, groceries, and beverages
The OSHA inspectors will focus on employers classified under 10 NAICS codes, including 312111, 312112, 311511, 493120, 493110, 445110, 424410, 424470, 424490, and 424810. (Find your industry’s NAICS code here.) But inspection lists won’t be limited to these NAICS codes. This REP has a stated goal of reducing injuries associated with forklifts, so any warehousing, storage, or distribution operation that uses powered industrial trucks may also end up on the inspection list.
Note, however, that this program doesn’t include shipyards or marine terminals. Also, any facility that’s had a comprehensive OSHA inspection within the last three years will be removed from the inspection list — and once lists are finalized, inspection sites will be chosen randomly, so there’s no guarantee your facility will be inspected.
Goals of the REP for Warehousing Operation
According to the OSHA directive that outlines the REP for Warehousing Operation, the program’s goal is to “reduce injury/illness rates in the warehousing industry by conducting comprehensive inspections…” During these inspections, OSHA officials will look for hazards associated with the following areas:
- Use of powered industrial trucks, such as forklifts
- Lockout/tagout procedures and compliance
- Fire prevention and suppression
- Safety exit routes (“means of egress”)
- Storage rack systems
- Hazardous energy controls
- Other safety issues, including ergonomics, slipping risks, and more
“With the rapid growth of e-commerce, the warehousing industry has significantly expanded,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Michael Rivera in a 2022 press release. “This emphasis program will address hazardous conditions these workers continuously face every day.”
But while inspections are the main intervention OSHA will use to meet its goal of reducing injury rates in the warehousing industry, they’re not the only element of the Region 3 warehouse safety program.
Elements of the OSHA Warehouse Safety Program
The REP for Warehousing Operation began August 3, 2022, with three months of dedicated outreach and education on warehouse safety. Representatives from OSHA began meeting with industry stakeholders — including employers, workers, and trade associations — to provide detailed guidance on safety and health issues at warehouses.
As the outreach portion of the initiative draws to a close, OSHA will turn its focus to “targeted enforcement” through comprehensive facility safety inspections. Many of these will be “programmed inspections” of sites picked randomly from a master list, as detailed above. But the Region 3 REP for Warehousing Operation will also include “unprogrammed inspections,” which are triggered by reports, complaints, and referrals describing hazardous practices or conditions.
How to Prepare for OSHA Warehouse Safety Inspections
If you operate a warehouse, storage facility, or distribution yard within OSHA’s Region 3, you can start to prepare by participating in OSHA’s scheduled outreach programs. During the education phase of the REP for Warehousing Operation, OSHA is also encouraging warehouse operators to review their facilities to ensure compliance with OSHA standards before inspections begin.
In particular, employers should conduct compliance audits focused on the OSHA regulations and industry standards highlighted in the REP’s guidance documents. These include:
- Rack system safety: ANSI MH 16.1 - Specification for the Design, Testing, and Utilization of Industrial Steel Storage Racks; ANSI MH 16.3 - Specification for the Design, Testing, and Utilization of Industrial Steel Cantilevered Storage Racks
- Injury and illness record-keeping: OSHA standard 1904
- Fire safety: NFPA 101®, Life Safety Code®
- Hazardous energy controls: OSHA standard 1910.147
- Ergonomics and environmental hazards: OSHA Pocket Guide: Worker Safety Series - Warehousing; Guidelines for Retail Grocery Stores: Ergonomics for Prevention of Musculoskeletal Disorders; OSHA National Emphasis Program: Outdoor and Indoor Heat-Related Hazards
- Powered industrial truck safety: OSHA standard 1910.178
If you find that your facility doesn’t comply fully with the listed standards and regulations, address the shortcoming as quickly as possible. Often, the problem can be solved with simple engineering controls — equipment and procedures that reduce the hazard. BHS, Inc. offers a full range of forklift battery handling equipment that helps to comply with OSHA standard 1910.178(g), which covers charging and changing industrial batteries. We also provide material handling solutions that support OSHA’s guidance on ergonomics and general workplace safety.
To discuss how these products support compliance with OSHA rules and guidelines, and can help you prepare for any OSHA warehouse safety program, contact the BHS sales team at 1.800.BHS.9500 today.
