November 5, 2025
ShareWhen OSHA Deadlines Won’t Wait but Nobody’s Available to Help
The federal government shutdown began October 1, 2025 and has stretched past a month with no resolution in sight. OSHA regional offices sit empty. OSHA has furloughed 1,204 out of 1,664 staff members—roughly 75% of its workforce, including compliance officers. Administrative functions are suspended. The Agency continues high-priority enforcement with its skeleton crew while maintaining zero tolerance for missed employer deadlines.
OSHA Deadlines Haven’t Stopped Running!
Citations are still being issued, and your 15-day window of time to contest a citation keeps ticking. Additionally, injury reporting requirements remain in full force. If you call about an ongoing inspection, you’ll get an out-of-office message. If you try to schedule an informal conference before the notice of contest deadline, OSHA’s staff is furloughed, and you will be “forced” to send a notice of contest timely, which then removes the case from the local OSHA office and sends it to the Solicitor General’s Office of the Department of Labor to file an administrative complaint against your company. If you miss your contest deadline, you’ve permanently waived your right to challenge the citation(s).
What’s Operating and What’s Not
OSHA Furloughed 75% But Key Enforcement Continues
The 2025 shutdown hit OSHA particularly hard after earlier DOGE cuts and resignations. Now 1,204 out of 1,664 staff members are furloughed—far exceeding DOL’s contingency plan.
What’s suspended: Regional offices, rulemaking, cooperative programs, compliance assistance, informal conferences, settlement negotiations, VPP applications, and new programmed inspections.
What continues: Imminent danger inspections, workplace fatality and catastrophe investigations, serious safety complaints, follow-up inspections on high-gravity violations, and citations for cases approaching the six-month statute of limitations.
Why OSHA Keeps Issuing Citations: The Six-Month Clock
The Occupational Safety and Health Act imposes a six-month statute of limitations on citations. OSHA must issue citations within six months of becoming aware of violations or losing enforcement authority permanently.
The shutdown doesn’t pause this deadline. Congress hasn’t extended it.
OSHA must issue citations for cases approaching the six-month deadline or forfeit enforcement authority. You may receive citations without pre-citation communications or informal conference opportunities—but with standard contest and abatement deadlines fully enforceable.
Critical Deadlines That Won’t Wait
The 15-Working-Day Contest Deadline
When OSHA issues a citation, you have 15 working days to file a Notice of Contest. This deadline is jurisdictional—miss it, and you’ve permanently waived your right to challenge any violation, penalty, or abatement requirement.
During the shutdown, the 15-working-day deadline continues running. Informal conferences are cancelled. Settlement staff is furloughed. Your contest deadline expires anyway.
Your only option: File a Notice of Contest to preserve your rights, even without informal conference opportunities. You can’t negotiate with unavailable OSHA personnel, but you can’t afford to miss the deadline. However, counsel can still negotiate on your behalf with the attorneys assigned by the Department of Labor to prosecute the administrative complaint.
Injury and Illness Reporting Continues
Employers must continue reporting work-related injuries and illnesses under 29 CFR 1904.39:
Fatalities: Report within 8 hours via OSHA’s hotline (1-800-321-OSHA).
Serious injuries: Report in-patient hospitalizations, amputations, or loss of an eye within 24 hours.
OSHA has maintained emergency phone lines even with most staff furloughed.
OSHA 300 Log Recording Requirements
Within 7 calendar days of a recordable work-related injury or illness, employers required to maintain OSHA logs must add entries to Form 300 and complete Form 301 incident reports. The shutdown doesn’t suspend recordkeeping obligations.
Abatement Deadlines
Citation abatement deadlines continue running. Document your abatement efforts even if you can’t communicate with OSHA compliance officers about completion.
OSHRC Operations Suspended
The Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission—the independent agency adjudicating contested citations—has ceased all operations. No hearings, no decisions, no settlement conferences.
Contest filings are still accepted and will be processed once appropriations resume. File your Notice of Contest even though adjudication won’t begin until the government reopens.
Practical Guidance During the Shutdown
If You Receive a Citation
Act immediately. File your Notice of Contest within 15 working days. You can settle or withdraw later, but you cannot revive missed deadlines.
Document everything. Photograph abatement efforts, retain receipts, and maintain detailed compliance records. You may need this documentation months from now.
Consult experienced counsel. Without access to OSHA’s settlement process, legal guidance becomes more critical for evaluating citations and protecting your interests. While not necessary, it’s best to file the Notice through counsel, so OSHA and the Solicitor General’s Office know you are serious about fighting the citation(s). Even if ultimately, your intention is not to go to trial, having counsel involved in filing the Notice increases the chances of a favorable settlement.
If You’re in an Ongoing Inspection
Inspections initiated before the shutdown are largely suspended unless they involve imminent danger, fatalities, or catastrophes. Compliance officers are unreachable.
Don’t assume the inspection is abandoned. Document last contact with OSHA, preserve all evidence, and maintain records of corrective actions. The inspection will resume when appropriations are restored.
For Injury Reporting
Maintain normal injury analysis procedures. If an incident is work-related and meets reporting criteria (fatality, hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss), report it to OSHA’s hotline immediately.
Document your reporting—when you called, who you spoke with, what information you provided.
Monitor Developments
The shutdown situation remains fluid. OSHA’s operational status, Congressional action, and enforcement priorities could change rapidly.
What Not to Do
Don’t assume the shutdown provides compliance relief. Critical obligations continue, and deadlines remain enforceable.
Don’t ignore citations or deadlines. Missed contest deadlines create final orders with no appeal rights.
Don’t delay reporting serious injuries. Reporting violations can be cited once OSHA resumes normal operations.
When the Shutdown Ends
When appropriations resume, expect significant OSHA activity:
Suspended inspections will resume, and accumulated complaints will be processed.
Cases delayed during the shutdown will generate citations rapidly.
Informal conferences and settlement discussions will restart, but backlogs may create delays.
Contested cases will move forward, though hearing schedules may face months of backlog.
Employers who maintained compliance during the shutdown and preserved legal rights by filing timely contests will be positioned far better than those who missed deadlines or assumed enforcement obligations were suspended.
The Bottom Line
Government shutdowns slow regulatory processes but don’t stop compliance obligations. OSHA deadlines continue whether or not agency personnel are available. Citations are issued. Reporting requirements remain enforceable. Contest deadlines expire.
The compliance paradox: you can’t negotiate with furloughed OSHA staff, but you can’t afford to miss jurisdictional deadlines while waiting for them to return. The solution requires proactive compliance, immediate action on deadlines, comprehensive documentation, and experienced legal guidance.
Don’t let the shutdown trap you into missed deadlines with permanent consequences.
Guidance for OSHA Compliance During the Shutdown
Navigating OSHA obligations during the government shutdown requires strategic thinking and immediate action. Whether you’ve received citations during the shutdown, face reporting obligations without OSHA guidance, or need help protecting your rights while agency personnel remain furloughed, experienced counsel makes the difference between preserved rights and permanent waiver.
Gary L. Brown
Chair, Construction Law Division
Kelley Kronenberg-Fort Lauderdale, FL.
(954) 370-9970
Email
Bio
Gary L. Brown practices occupational safety and health law at Kelley Kronenberg, where he counsels employers on OSHA compliance, workplace safety programs, and OSHA regulatory defense matters. He chairs the firm’s Construction Law Division where he oversees the firm’s statewide construction litigation practice and national OSHA enforcement defense.