Federal OSHA

South Dakota Safety Training and OSHA Tailgate Talks

Private employers in South Dakota fall under federal OSHA. Enforcement records show 1,562 inspections at private worksites in South Dakota opened from October 2020 to September 2026, with 3,108 citations.

Private employers
Federal OSHA
29 CFR
State and local government
No OSHA coverage
No State Plan for public employers
Private-sector inspections
1,562
Oct 2020 – September 2026
Trades ranked on own data
Pooled federal ranking
All federal OSHA states

Which safety rules apply in South Dakota

South Dakota 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 South Dakota, and what hurts people

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

The hazard cited most at private worksites in South Dakota is Fall protection & working at heights: 22% of the citations grouped by hazard, the same share as across federal OSHA states. Among the others, the hazard that stands out most is Safety program & training (29 CFR 1926.20, .21): 7% here, 2.4 times its share across federal OSHA states. The industry that stands out most is Agriculture: 3% of South Dakota’s citations, 2.9 times its share across federal OSHA states.

Hazards cited most at private worksites in South Dakota

  1. Fall protection & working at heights630 citations
  2. Machine guarding276 citations
  3. Electrical safety215 citations
  4. Safety program & training (29 CFR 1926.20, .21)203 citations
  5. Ladder safety197 citations
  6. Forklifts & powered industrial trucks166 citations

93% of the 3,108 citations are under a standard the ranking can group by hazard.

Where South Dakota’s citations fall, by industry

  1. Construction42% · about 1,083
  2. Manufacturing20% · about 523
  3. Residential & Commercial Services15% · about 393
  4. Agriculture3% · about 90 · 2.9×
  5. Utilities & Public Works3% · about 85 · 1.4×
  6. Janitorial & Facility Services3% · about 68 · 1.3×

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 South Dakota

The schedule for South Dakota 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. 96% of South Dakota’s citations, by industry code, are in trades ranked on the pooled data. South Dakota’s own counts show where that ranking matters most here; they don’t change its order.

Trades that stand out in South Dakota

South Dakota’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 South Dakota: about 562 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade.

South Dakota citations

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

  1. 1Fall protection & working at heights · 280
  2. 2Ladder safety · 93
  3. 3Safety program & training (29 CFR 1926.20, .21) · 74

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

Agriculture

Grain Handling & Elevator Operations

The Agriculture trade with the most citations at private worksites in South Dakota: about 59 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade. Agriculture makes up 2.9 times as large a share of South Dakota’s citations as across federal OSHA states.

South Dakota citations

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

  1. 1Confined spaces · 10
  2. 2Machine guarding · 10
  3. 3Electrical safety · 8

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

312 citations, about 13 deaths, about 11 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Fall protection & working at heights
  2. 2Machine guarding
  3. 3Confined spaces

Manufacturing

Wood Products & Furniture

The Manufacturing trade with the most citations at private worksites in South Dakota: about 118 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade.

South Dakota citations

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

  1. 1Machine guarding · 31
  2. 2Electrical safety · 14
  3. 3Lockout/tagout (hazardous energy) · 13

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

2,465 citations, about 18 deaths, about 36 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Machine guarding
  2. 2Lockout/tagout (hazardous energy)
  3. 3Caught-in & caught-between

Food Service & Hospitality

Bakery & Specialty Food Production

The Food Service & Hospitality trade with the most citations at private worksites in South Dakota: about 32 since October 2020, at employers whose industry code belongs to this trade.

South Dakota citations

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

  1. 1Electrical safety · 8
  2. 2Lockout/tagout (hazardous energy) · 6
  3. 3Flammables, welding & hot work · 3

Federal OSHA statesDrives the schedule

417 citations, about 3 deaths, about 11 hospitalizations since October 2020

  1. 1Machine guarding
  2. 2Lockout/tagout (hazardous energy)
  3. 3Caught-in & caught-between

How My Safety Solution works in South Dakota

  • When you set up your company, you pick South Dakota. 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.

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