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A group of Democratic US senators sent a letter to the Department of Labor expressing alarm over a significant drop in workplace safety enforcement under the Trump administration in 2025. In the letter, the senators criticized proposed cuts to OSHA's budget, efforts to roll back safety regulations, and a sharp decline in inspections and penalties.
The senators requested answers from the Department of Labor
regarding its plans for workplace safety, citing that a low
likelihood of substantial fines can reduce employers'
incentives to comply with workplace safety standards designed to
protect American workers. OSHA head David Keeling responded that
the agency aims to fill 180 vacant inspector positions, noting that
OSHA lost more than 180 inspectors from September 2024 to September
2025. OSHA leaders have also emphasized a more "balanced
approach" that pairs enforcement with collaboration and
compliance assistance for businesses.
As OSHA recalibrates its approach, employers will need to stay attentive to evolving enforcement strategies while continuing to prioritize workplace safety compliance.
According to OSHA statistics comparing the months of
April through September 2025 with the same period in 2024, the
agency reduced workplace inspections by 20 percent," according
to the letter. "Those statistics also show a 42 percent
decrease in the number of 'willful violations' found during
inspections by OSHA during the months of April-September of 2025 as
compared to the same period in 2024. A third party's
independent analysis of OSHA enforcements actions during the first
nine months of the Trump Administration found that the agency had
brought 35 percent fewer cases than the same period in previous
administrations. It also found that OSHA imposed just $94 million
in penalties—47% lower than the first nine months of the last
17 years.
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