By William P. Morrow, Attorney at Morrow Law Firm, Opelousas, Louisiana
When an employee gets injured on the job, there are often more questions than answers. How did it happen? Was it preventable? Who is responsible? While workers’ compensation exists to provide benefits in most cases, it doesn’t always tell the whole story. That’s where a deeper legal investigation comes into play—particularly one that looks at whether safety violations occurred. And more often than not, the conversation turns to OSHA.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) sets and enforces standards designed to ensure safe working conditions. These federal regulations apply to most private employers and cover everything from fall protection and scaffolding to chemical exposure and machine operation. When a serious injury occurs in a workplace covered by OSHA, one of the first steps in any meaningful legal analysis is to examine whether those standards were violated.
An OSHA violation isn’t just a slap on the wrist. It’s a formal declaration that something wasn’t done according to the rules—and that something may have directly or indirectly contributed to a worker’s injury. While an OSHA citation doesn’t automatically create civil liability, it can serve as powerful evidence in a court case. It can demonstrate that a hazard existed, that the employer knew or should have known about it, and that nothing was done to fix it before someone got hurt.
From a legal standpoint, this matters in a big way. In Louisiana, most employees are covered under the workers’ compensation system, which limits the ability to sue their direct employer for negligence. However, there are often third parties involved—contractors, subcontractors, equipment manufacturers, property owners. If an OSHA violation points to negligence on the part of any of these entities, it opens the door to a third-party claim. That’s where compensation for pain and suffering, future lost wages, and other damages becomes available.
OSHA violations also play a major role in shaping the narrative of a case. When a citation is issued after an accident, it gives shape to what otherwise might be a vague or contested account. A fall becomes more than just a fall—it becomes a fall from an unguarded platform. A burn becomes more than an accident—it becomes the result of a missing safety shield. These details matter. They turn abstract injuries into specific failures of duty, and that’s exactly what the law evaluates.
Another thing to consider is the classification of the violation itself. OSHA doesn’t just issue a single type of citation. Violations can be labeled as “serious,” “willful,” “repeat,” or “other-than-serious.” Each category carries weight. A serious violation indicates a substantial probability of harm. A willful violation means the employer knew the risk and disregarded it. Repeat violations suggest an ongoing pattern. These aren’t just bureaucratic labels—they’re part of a broader legal strategy when arguing about fault and responsibility.
Of course, not every unsafe workplace gets caught by OSHA. Inspections usually happen after an incident, a complaint, or a random audit. That means many unsafe practices go undocumented. In these cases, it’s up to legal counsel to investigate independently. That might include interviewing witnesses, gathering maintenance records, reviewing safety training logs, and bringing in experts to evaluate the conditions on site.
When violations are discovered, they also influence how cases are settled. OSHA findings often change the posture of negotiations. Liability becomes harder to deny. Insurance adjusters take the case more seriously. Settlement offers may reflect not just the injury, but the underlying negligence that allowed it to happen. This isn’t theory—it plays out daily in injury litigation across Louisiana.
There’s also the public aspect. OSHA maintains a searchable database of violations, and that record is open to scrutiny. A company that’s been cited multiple times for similar issues may find itself under increased legal pressure. Patterns of negligence are harder to dismiss, especially when the same hazard keeps showing up on incident reports.
Still, OSHA violations are just one piece of the puzzle. They don’t automatically prove a claim. They don’t replace the need for medical records, testimony, or expert analysis. But they do provide a legal foothold—a place to begin asking the right questions, and in many cases, uncovering the truth.
Injury litigation is rarely straightforward. Every case comes with a unique mix of circumstances, policies, and players. But in the realm of workplace injuries, OSHA serves as a kind of compass. It points to what should have been done, what wasn’t done, and what the consequences were.
Understanding this is crucial for any injured worker. It’s not just about compensation—it’s about accountability. It’s about changing unsafe conditions and preventing the same injury from happening again. And it starts by looking at the facts, including whether those facts involve an OSHA violation that should never have been allowed in the first place.
At the end of the day, safety regulations exist for a reason. When they’re ignored, people get hurt. And when people get hurt, the law has a duty to step in, ask tough questions, and—when necessary—hold the right parties accountable.
That’s what the legal system is for. That’s what injury law is about. And that’s why OSHA violations matter more than most people realize.