Regulations & Compliance

Regulations and industry standards are the backbone of workplace safety, establishing lawful safety and health protections for employees. In the United States, OSHA is the governing regulatory body with the authority to publish and enforce safety standards.

Employers must comply with all applicable OSHA standards, ultimately complying with the General Duty Clause which requires employers to maintain a work environment that is “free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees.”

Over the years, OSHA has published hundreds of health and safety standards, many of which were developed with contributions from a number of agencies and organizations.

• ANSI: OSHA often incorporates specific standards from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) into regulations, effectively making these voluntary consensus standards law.
• NFPA: The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has published more than 300 consensus codes and standards to improve electrical and fire safety in the workplace.
• ISO: The International Organization for Standardization, a global non-governmental organization, is the biggest developed of voluntary consensus standards in the world.

Compliant facilities are less likely to face in hefty OSHA penalties, high workers' compensation costs, unforeseen medical expenses, work stoppages, or even a total business shutdown, and compliance can actually dramatically improve an organization's productivity.

Creative Safety Supply is dedicated to providing you with the resources you need to meet compliance and maintain a safe working environment. Below we have gathered our expert information on industry standards and regulations. Whether you're looking for hazard communication requirements or the standards for safety signs, we can help.

Getting Started

• Confused with safety acronyms and technical terms? Browse our safety glossary.
• Want to learn more about workplace safety regulations? Explore our OSHA resources.
• Have a question about personal protective equipment? Browse our PPE Q&A hub.
• Ready to get started? Shop our selection of personal protective equipment.