Pennsylvania — Workplace Safety

Pennsylvania workplace safety operates under a dual framework. Private-sector employees are covered by federal OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Act and its regulations), enforced by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Public-sector employees—including all county, municipal, and Commonwealth workers—are covered instead by the Pennsylvania General Safety Law (Act No. 174 of 1937, P.L. 654), which is administered and enforced by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. Federal OSHA regulations preempt the General Safety Law for private-sector workers; the state law applies only to public employers.

Source: PA Dept. of Labor & Industry, Report a Workplace Safety Complaint

Pennsylvania public-sector employers covered by the General Safety Law face mandatory accident-reporting deadlines under regulations implementing Act No. 174 of 1937. These requirements apply to all county, municipal, and Commonwealth employees and their employers—the same public-sector universe that falls outside federal OSHA coverage (see the private-vs-public-sector-coverage section).

Reporting deadlines

Under 34 Pa. Code § 39.34(b), incorporating by reference Act of July 19, 1913 (No. 408), codified at 43 P.S. § 12, "all accidents incurred in the course of employment and causing disability in excess of the working shift or turn in which the injury was received shall be reported by the employer to the Department within 15 days from the date of the injury." The regulation carves out one exception: "injuries resulting in the death of an employe shall be reported within 48 hours from the time of the injury."

The 48-hour death-reporting rule runs from the time of the injury itself, not from the time of death. The standard deadline for non-fatal injuries is 15 days from the date of injury.

Threshold: disability exceeds the shift

The reporting obligation is triggered when disability exceeds the working shift or turn in which the injury occurred. An injury that prevents the employee from completing the shift, or that results in any absence beyond that shift, crosses the threshold. First-aid-only incidents resolved during the same shift do not trigger the 15-day requirement, though employers may choose to document them for internal purposes.

Submission process

The Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry accepts General Safety Law reports and complaints through its UCC Inspection Division, Bureau of Occupational and Industrial Safety. According to the Department's public guidance, submissions may be made by email to jecole@pa.gov, by fax at (717) 346-1233, or by mail to Chief, UCC Inspection Division, Department of Labor & Industry, 651 Boas Street, Room 1624, Harrisburg, PA 17121-0750. The Department publishes a General Safety Law Complaint Form (LIBI 28) for use by employees; the regulation does not prescribe a particular form for employer accident reports. Prudent practice is to submit a written report identifying the injured employee, the date and time of the injury, the nature of the injury and resulting disability, and the employer's contact information.

Enforcement

Violation of the General Safety Law or its implementing regulations is subject to summary proceedings. Under 34 Pa. Code § 39.5, any person who violates the General Safety Law or departmental regulations or who interferes with the Department in enforcement "shall be subject to summary proceedings before an alderman, magistrate or district justice, and upon conviction shall be penalized under section 15 of act of May 18, 1937 (No. 174) (43 P.S. § 25-15)." Failure to report a qualifying workplace accident within the statutory deadline is itself a violation. The Department may also cite deficiencies and issue orders to correct violations, or pursue criminal prosecution depending on the nature of the findings.

Source: 34 Pa. Code § 39.34 Source: 34 Pa. Code § 39.5 Source: PA Dept. of Labor & Industry, General Safety

Pennsylvania imposes specific monetary and criminal penalties for violations of its General Safety Law (Act of May 18, 1937; P.L. 654, No. 174), codified at 43 P.S. § 25-15. These penalties apply to any violation of the General Safety Law or the regulations issued by the Department of Labor & Industry — including failures to report workplace accidents as required under the law.

Monetary fines and imprisonment

• For a first offense, the violator is subject to a fine between $25 and $100. If the fine and costs are not paid, the offender may be imprisoned for up to 30 days.
• For a second offense, the fine increases to a range of $50 to $200. Failure to pay this fine (and costs) allows for imprisonment up to 60 days.
• A third or subsequent offense becomes a misdemeanor. The violator faces a fine up to $500, or imprisonment up to 6 months, or both, at the court's discretion.

Separate offenses and escalation

Each violation is counted separately — for example, each failure to report an individual workplace accident within the prescribed deadline is an independent offense and subject to its own penalty. Penalties apply equally to anyone found interfering with the enforcement of the Department or its personnel.

All fines collected must be forwarded by the Department directly to the State Treasury through the Department of Revenue.

Source: 43 P.S. § 25-15

34 Pa. Code § 39.34(b) sets a 15-day deadline (from the date of injury) for employers to report non-fatal workplace accidents causing disability beyond the affected shift, and a 48-hour deadline for reporting injuries resulting in death. However, the regulation does not expressly state whether this deadline is measured by the date the Department of Labor & Industry receives the report, the date it is postmarked (if sent by mail), or the date of electronic transmission (if sent by email or fax).

A review of the statute, regulation, and Departmental guidance reveals no clarification on this point as of June 2026. The Department’s published instructions identify reporting methods and contact information, but are silent on whether a report is timely if postmarked on the deadline date but received later, or if the timestamp on an email or fax transmission controls. No case law or formal administrative interpretation was identified that resolves the issue.

In the absence of explicit guidance, employers should make every practicable effort to ensure that reports are transmitted in a manner that allows for prompt receipt by the Department, preferably well in advance of the stated deadlines.

Unable to confirm as of 2026-06-16.

Pennsylvania workplace safety law splits coverage between federal OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Act) for private-sector employees and the Pennsylvania General Safety Law (Act No. 174 of 1937) for public-sector employees. But employees working in contractor, hybrid, or public-private arrangements do not always fit cleanly into one category.

Private contractor employees on public works or at public facilities:

Federal OSHA applies to private-sector workers, even if their job is physically located at a public facility or if they are performing work under contract for a government agency. Under 29 U.S.C. § 652(5) (the OSHA definition of "employer"), state and local governments are not employers for OSHA purposes—unless they are acting as private employers in a contractual arrangement. The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry guidance affirms that OSHA covers private employees in these scenarios, while direct public-sector employees remain under the General Safety Law.

Direct employees of public bodies:

State, county, and municipal employees (those directly employed by government entities) are covered exclusively by the Pennsylvania General Safety Law, not federal OSHA. There is no primary authority extending the General Safety Law to workers solely because they work at a public site if their legal employer is private.

Public-private partnerships and ambiguous/joint employment situations:

For more complex arrangements—such as public-private partnerships (P3s) or joint employment cases—primary authority remains limited. Neither the Pennsylvania General Safety Law nor published state guidance directly governs hybrid control or split supervision situations. No regulation or Department opinion as of June 2026 resolves exactly how safety coverage applies if a private entity and a public body both exert substantial control over workplace safety for the same personnel. In these cases, the safest assumption, based on statutory definitions, is that coverage follows legal employment status: OSHA applies to employees of private firms, and the General Safety Law applies to direct public employees. However, because Pennsylvania authority is silent on many hybrid fact patterns, unresolved gray areas remain.

Summary table:

• Direct public employees: Covered by General Safety Law (PA Dept. of Labor & Industry, General Safety)
• Private contractor employees (even on public property): Covered by OSHA (29 U.S.C. § 652(5))
• Public-private partnership/hybrid scenarios: No clear controlling authority; coverage likely follows legal employer but may be unresolved as of June 2026

In sum: For most contractor and hybrid arrangements, OSHA covers private employees and the General Safety Law covers direct public employees. Where control is shared or ambiguous, practitioners face a primary-authority gap in Pennsylvania.

Source: PA Dept. of Labor & Industry, General Safety Source: 29 U.S.C. § 652(5)