OSHA answers, cited to the federal record.
Cairn is an OSHA compliance research platform for EHS and safety teams. Ask any OSHA question and get an answer drawn from the current 29 CFR standards, OSHA's interpretation letters and the federal enforcement record, with citations to each source.
Every claim carries a numbered reference you can open, read, and hand to a CFO, a board, or an OSHA Area Director. When the record is silent, Cairn says so instead of guessing.
Ask a real question
Pick a sample question. The answer comes from the same record your sales demo would use.
The whole record, cited
OSHA publishes its rules, its interpretation letters and every citation it issues. Cairn reads all of it and cites the official source behind every answer.
112,067
Citations under 1926.501(b)(13), the most-cited construction standard
Source: OSHA enforcement record
$387M
Penalties assessed for residential fall-protection failures
Source: OSHA enforcement record, 1926.501(b)(13)
13,879
State plan rules from 19 states, searched beside the federal standards
Source: state codes, October 2026
NAICS
Incident rate benchmarks for every industry code
Source: federal injury and illness data
Federal counts are from the enforcement record, as of September 2026. The state rule count is from the state codes, October 2026.
Ask it like you'd ask a consultant
Cairn wrote the answer shown here from its record on October 13, 2026. The text is shown without edits, and each numbered reference matches a source listed under it.
Can a safety incentive program that rewards a year with no injuries get us in trouble?
A safety incentive program that rewards a year with no injuries can potentially get you in trouble, depending on how it's designed and implemented.
The core risk: 1 explains that if employees or work groups are disqualified from receiving the incentive because someone reports an injury, this "could be considered unlawful discrimination" under section 11(c) of the OSH Act. 1 notes that the key factor is whether the incentive is "of sufficient magnitude that failure to receive it 'might have dissuaded reasonable workers from' reporting injuries."
The current guidance: However, 2 clarifies that rate-based incentive programs (which focus on reducing reported injuries) are permissible under 29 C.F.R. § 1904.35(b)(1)(iv) "as long as they are not implemented in a manner that discourages reporting." 2 states that if you withhold a prize or bonus because of a reported injury, OSHA will not cite you provided you have "implemented adequate precautions to ensure that employees feel free to report an injury or illness."
To stay compliant: 2 recommends taking positive steps such as:
- Implementing an incentive program that rewards employees for identifying unsafe conditions
- Providing training on reporting rights and the employer's non-retaliation policy
- Creating a mechanism to evaluate employees' willingness to report injuries
The bottom line: A no-injury incentive program itself is not prohibited, but you must ensure employees don't feel discouraged from reporting injuries and you should take affirmative steps to foster a safety culture that encourages—rather than punishes—incident reporting.
- Source
- Real answer from the Cairn record
- Run on
- October 13, 2026
- Citations
- 2 sources cited
An answer you can't check is a liability you can't defend.
Cairn reads the record, finds the controlling source, and writes the answer from what that source says.
Every claim carries a numbered reference you can open, read, and hand to a CFO, a board, or an OSHA Area Director. When the record is silent, Cairn says so instead of guessing.
Regulation
The 29 CFR standard text your inspector opens, updated as the rules change.
Interpretation letter
Decades of OSHA letters, directives, and enforcement memos, cited by standard number and date.
Enforcement case
The full federal enforcement record: inspections, violations, accident narratives, and penalty histories.
Research report
Investigation reports, exposure science, and industry safety research, surfaced when they match your question.
The tools your team opens first
Search & answer
Ask a question in plain language and get a cited answer drawn from regulatory text, agency interpretations, the enforcement record, and related safety research.
Enforcement lookup
The full federal enforcement record: inspections, violations, accident narratives, and penalty histories for any establishment.
Industry benchmarking
Compare your Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) and Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) rate against your NAICS code.
Letter of Interpretation drafter
Generate a Letter of Interpretation request from any chat, edit the fields, and export a print-ready PDF on company letterhead.
Answers for your industry and your state
Set your industry (its NAICS code) and your states once. Every answer covers federal OSHA, and the state's own rules where your state runs an OSHA plan. Enforcement data and benchmarks start from your industry.
- Manufacturing NAICS 31 to 33 Covers lockout/tagout, machine guarding, hazard communication, and ergonomics.
- Construction NAICS 23 Covers fall protection, scaffolding, trenching, and silica.
- Oil & Gas NAICS 211, 213 Covers PSM, HAZWOPER, well control, and H₂S.
- Warehousing & Logistics NAICS 493, 484 Covers powered industrial trucks (forklifts), racking, ergonomics, and dock safety.
- Chemical Manufacturing NAICS 325 Covers PSM, RMP, hazard communication, and lab safety.
- Utilities NAICS 22 Covers high-voltage work rules, arc flash, confined spaces, and fall protection.
From the field guides
Every citation ties to an official source.
The guide gives the OSHA fall protection height for each industry with its CFR citation, which is 4 ft or more in general industry, more than 5 ft at shipyard deck and platform edges, 6 ft or more in construction, 8 ft or more in longshoring, more than 10 ft on scaffolds and more than 15 ft in steel erection. It quotes the CFR text, lists the exceptions and cites enforcement data. 1926.501(b)(13) is the most-cited construction standard, with 112,067 citations on record.
The HazCom standard requires a written program, safety data sheets, labels, and training, and 1910.1200(e)(1) is the most-cited OSHA standard, with 211,420 citations on record.
The lockout/tagout standard, 1910.147, requires energy-control procedures, an annual periodic inspection, and training, and it is a Top 10 OSHA citation year after year. The guide explains each requirement with the controlling CFR text and OSHA enforcement data.
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