Federal OSHA

Colorado Safety Training and OSHA Tailgate Talks

Private employers in Colorado fall under federal OSHA. Enforcement records show 6,119 inspections at private worksites in Colorado opened from October 2020 to September 2026, with 7,442 citations.

Private employers
Federal OSHA
29 CFR
State and local government
No OSHA coverage
No State Plan for public employers
Private-sector inspections
6,119
Oct 2020 – September 2026
Trades ranked on own data
Pooled federal ranking
All federal OSHA states

Which safety rules apply in Colorado

Colorado has no OSHA-approved State Plan: private employers fall under federal OSHA and 29 CFR, and state and local government employers have no OSHA coverage, since only a State Plan covers public employers.

What gets cited in Colorado, and what hurts people

Counts from U.S. Department of Labor OSHA enforcement records: inspections at private worksites in Colorado opened from October 2020 to September 2026. Rankings and schedule data as of September 27, 2026.

The hazard cited most at private worksites in Colorado is Fall protection & working at heights: 21% of the citations grouped by hazard, against 22% across federal OSHA states. Among the others, the hazard that stands out most is Excavation & trenching: 5% here, 2.0 times its share across federal OSHA states. The industry that stands out most is Auto & Vehicle Services: 7% of Colorado’s citations, 3.4 times its share across federal OSHA states.

Hazards cited most at private worksites in Colorado

  1. Fall protection & working at heights1,470 citations
  2. Hazard Communication (GHS labels & SDS)605 citations
  3. Respiratory protection520 citations
  4. Electrical safety405 citations
  5. Machine guarding377 citations
  6. Personal protective equipment346 citations

93% of the 7,442 citations are under a standard the ranking can group by hazard.

Where Colorado’s citations fall, by industry

  1. Construction32% · about 2,066
  2. Manufacturing19% · about 1,233
  3. Residential & Commercial Services14% · about 924
  4. Auto & Vehicle Services7% · about 451 · 3.4×
  5. Mining & Quarrying5% · about 323 · 3.0×
  6. Utilities & Public Works4% · about 250 · 1.7×

By industry code; a code that fits two industries is split evenly. “×”: share here against the share across federal OSHA states.

How the schedule ranks trades for Colorado

The schedule for Colorado uses the ranking pooled across federal OSHA states (246,599 citations since October 2020) for the 147 trades with 150 or more pooled citations. The other 115 use the national pattern, built from 525,000+ OSHA citations nationwide, the most reliable data available for them. 94% of Colorado’s citations, by industry code, are in trades ranked on the pooled data. Colorado’s own counts show where that ranking matters most here; they don’t change its order.

Trades that stand out in Colorado

Colorado’s most-cited industry, then the ones over-represented here, each with its most-cited trade (counted by the industry codes that belong to that trade).

Construction

Roofing

The Construction trade with the most citations at private worksites in Colorado: about 1,196 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade.

Colorado citations

Plain counts for this trade since October 2020 (not weighted)

  1. 1Fall protection & working at heights · 746
  2. 2Ladder safety · 198
  3. 3Personal protective equipment · 107

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

47,343 citations, about 198 deaths, about 44 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Fall protection & working at heights
  2. 2Ladder safety
  3. 3Personal protective equipment

Auto & Vehicle Services

Auto Repair & General Maintenance

The Auto & Vehicle Services trade with the most citations at private worksites in Colorado: about 164 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade. Auto & Vehicle Services makes up 3.4 times as large a share of Colorado’s citations as across federal OSHA states.

Colorado citations

Plain counts for this trade since October 2020 (not weighted)

  1. 1Hazard Communication (GHS labels & SDS) · 47
  2. 2Electrical safety · 25
  3. 3Respiratory protection · 19

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

1,059 citations, about 28 deaths, about 11 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Struck-by & falling objects
  2. 2Mobile equipment, haulage & jobsite vehicles
  3. 3Electrical safety

Mining & Quarrying

Stone Cutting & Processing

The Mining & Quarrying trade with the most citations at private worksites in Colorado: about 307 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade. Mining & Quarrying makes up 3.0 times as large a share of Colorado’s citations as across federal OSHA states.

Colorado citations

Plain counts for this trade since October 2020 (not weighted)

  1. 1Silica dust · 84
  2. 2Respiratory protection · 83
  3. 3Hazard Communication (GHS labels & SDS) · 25

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

3,417 citations, about 13 deaths, about 4 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Silica dust
  2. 2Struck-by & falling objects
  3. 3Respiratory protection

Retail

Grocery & Supermarket

The Retail trade with the most citations at private worksites in Colorado: about 32 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade.

Colorado citations

Plain counts for this trade since October 2020 (not weighted)

  1. 1Electrical safety · 6
  2. 2Hazard Communication (GHS labels & SDS) · 5
  3. 3Emergency action & fire prevention · 4

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

1,143 citations, about 17 deaths, about 22 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Machine guarding
  2. 2Electrical safety
  3. 3Forklifts & powered industrial trucks

How My Safety Solution works in Colorado

  • When you set up your company, you pick Colorado. The app then applies federal OSHA and builds your tailgate talk schedule from the ranking pooled from federal OSHA states.
  • Each talk references the regulations it’s built on, from Cal/OSHA (Title 8) and federal OSHA (29 CFR). Title 8 applies only in California.
  • With no federal standard for them, heat illness prevention (May 1 – Sep 30), wildfire smoke protection (Jul 1 – Oct 31) and cold & wet weather work (Nov 1 – Feb 28) are placed in season for outdoor trades as practice guidance; HazCom, emergency action and injury reporting, once a year.
  • Keep your OSHA 300 log, 300A summary and 301 incident reports in the app, built around 29 CFR 1904. Guidance, not legal advice.
  • Help with a written program or a federal OSHA citation: consulting, as advice and guidance, requested from your account. Our team’s credentials include CHST, OSHA 500, OSHA 10 & 30.

About our safety consulting

Start your Colorado schedule

15-day free trial. No credit card required.

Create Account / Start Free TrialSign In

More states and next steps

Neighboring states