Virginia OSHA : What you need to know

Virginia is a “state plan” state, which means that it has a federally approved occupational safety and health regulatory program. Therefore, both public (government offices and operations) and private (private businesses and nonprofit organizations) sector employers are governed by state occupational safety and health regulations. The state has adopted by reference most of the federal worker safety and health requirements, including hazard communication. The state has adopted rules that are stricter than federal standards for certain workplace safety-specific topics, such as agricultural hand-labor operations.

For more information concerning federal safety and health rules, see the national sections OSHA and HAZARD COMMUNICATION STANDARD.

Virginia has adopted some penalties for private sector violations that are stricter than federal penalties. For an overview, see the state section ENFORCEMENT.

All employers with one or more employees must establish and implement a written accident prevention program (safety and health plan). Most employers must establish safety and health committees. Small employers must establish safety meetings.

Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s (DOLI) Virginia Occupational Safety and Health (VOSH) Program administers and enforces occupational safety and health requirements in private and public sector workplaces.

VOSH is a DOLI agency program. VOSH is the commonwealth’s counterpart to federal OSHA and protects workers from occupational hazards through its occupational safety and health rules.

The VOSH program is responsible for enforcing occupational safety and health laws and regulations in the private and ...