Workplace_Safety_Staff_Report

Background 
At the January 20, 2026 Town Council meeting, Councilmember Watts asked for follow-up information 
regarding workplace safety in the Town's non-fire operations and referenced OSHA's top 10 violations. 
This report reviews the injury record, OSHA’s top 10 violations, Town work, and the safety measures, 
training, and oversight in place. 
 
OSHA and Injury Trend Context 
Staff first looked at the Town's OSHA and injury records. Over the prior 12 years, staff identified 11 cases 
involving days away from work, with most years showing either no such case or only one. 
Staff also reviewed the underlying records and did not find a repeated pattern tied to one OSHA category or 
any other recurring type of incident. The days-away totals reflected a small number of isolated events 
rather than the same issue recurring. Staff also reviewed several recent years of workers' compensation 
pricing information through the Town's public risk pool, which was generally consistent with the injury 
record and did not suggest a notable or recurring claims issue. 
 
Safety Topics Most Relevant to Town Operations 
Not every topic on OSHA's list applies to Town operations. The ones most relevant to Town operations 
include hazard communication, ladder safety, lockout/tagout, personal protective equipment, eye and face 
protection, heat exposure, respiratory protection, fall protection, and machine guarding. 
Staff also looked at other risks relevant to Town operations, including chainsaw use, heavy equipment 
operation, traffic-control exposure, bloodborne pathogens, herbicide application, and other field hazards.  
Town Operating Context 
The Town has field and technical employees in streets, parks, facilities, building inspection, and code 
enforcement. Facilities work includes building systems such as HVAC, plumbing, electrical, fire alarm, 
security, and building automation systems. Street crews handle roadway maintenance and traffic-control 
activity. Building inspection and code enforcement involve regular site visits and field activity. 
Parks, grounds, and street maintenance also involve work such as herbicide application, mowing, operating 
backhoes and front loaders, chainsaw use, and storm response, including street clearance and sign repair.  
Most Town employees are not in field positions, and the Town does not directly operate utilities, 
sanitation, or police services. Some larger-scale mowing, tree trimming, road construction, and similar work 
is also handled by contractors. Town employees still perform work that can involve safety risks, which is 
why the safety measures described below are in place. 
Examples of Current Safety Measures and Training 
Workplace safety starts with the recruitment and hiring of capable employees, especially supervisors and 
managers who bring experience, training, and good judgment to the job. The Town relies heavily on 
supervisors to make sound day-to-day decisions, provide training, and help set a culture of safety. 
The Town supports workplace safety through field measures, training, supervision, and outside review. 
Employees are expected to use Town-provided personal protective equipment as needed, including

respiratory protection and eye and face protection, and the Town provides a steel-toe work boot 
reimbursement program. 
The Town also has a bloodborne pathogens program for positions where occupational exposure may arise 
in the course of work. In addition, the Town uses a specialized biohazard cleanup service, so employees are 
not expected to handle bodily-fluid cleanup or similar situations beyond their training, equipment, or 
normal scope of work. 
The Town also provides position- and task-specific training. This has included in-person chainsaw safety, 
pressure-washer safety, hands-on instruction, and supervisory direction. Herbicide applicators also receive 
at least 6 hours of formal refresher training each year. Departments and divisions are also required to 
maintain heat-safety plans. These include more breaks, modified schedules, cool water, electrolytes, and 
shade. 
For online training, the Town uses SafePersonnel/Vector Solutions and Safety Source, both available 
through AMRRP, the Arizona Municipal Risk Retention Pool, at no additional cost. Together, those safety 
libraries provide well over 150 courses totaling more than 50 hours of safety instruction. As those libraries 
have expanded, the Town has increased required safety assignments. 
Over the last five years, employees have completed about 1,200 online classes through the Town's training 
systems, representing over 500 hours of instruction. Not all of those classes were safety classes, but safety 
training makes up a substantial share of the overall library and required assignments. 
The Town also maintains systems for injury tracking and OSHA recordkeeping. OSHA 301 incident reports 
are completed at the time of injury, and the Town compiles the annual OSHA 300 and 300A logs and 
reports as required. 
The Town's safety efforts are also supported by outside review. The Town receives annual loss-control visits 
through its risk pool, including reviews of facilities such as the street yard and parks maintenance areas, 
with recommendations used to improve safety practices and conditions. The Town also had an ADOSH visit 
in 2015. The improvements from that visit remain in place. 
Conclusion 
The Town has a good track record with a small number of isolated injuries across a range of activities, not a 
repeated pattern tied to one OSHA category. The Town has a number of safety measures in place, including 
supervision, PPE, training, injury tracking and OSHA recordkeeping, heat planning, and annual loss-control 
visits. This review also led to additional required safety training in several areas.

Appendix A - OSHA Top 10 Violations, Preliminary FY 2025 
Source: Preliminary FY 2025 list presented at the 2025 NSC Safety Congress & Expo. OSHA's current official 
all-industry webpage still posts the FY 2024 list. 
The preliminary FY 2025 top 10 list included the following standards: 
1. Fall Protection - General Requirements (29 CFR 1926.501): 5,914 violations 
2. Hazard Communication (29 CFR 1910.1200): 2,546 
3. Ladders (29 CFR 1926.1053): 2,405 
4. Lockout/Tagout (29 CFR 1910.147): 2,177 
5. Respiratory Protection (29 CFR 1910.134): 1,953 
6. Fall Protection - Training Requirements (29 CFR 1926.503): 1,907 
7. Scaffolding (29 CFR 1926.451): 1,905 
8. Powered Industrial Trucks (29 CFR 1910.178): 1,826 
9. Eye and Face Protection (29 CFR 1926.102): 1,665 
10. Machine Guarding (29 CFR 1910.212): 1,239