The Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued a new enforcement directive on May 20, 2025, updating its Site-Specific Targeting methodology for workplace safety inspections. The directive, designated CPL 02-01-067, replaces the previous directive CPL 02-01-064 and establishes revised protocols for how OSHA identifies and prioritizes workplaces for safety enforcement actions.
The Site-Specific Targeting program represents one of OSHA's primary tools for directing limited inspection resources toward workplaces with the highest potential for safety violations or worker injuries. The program uses data-driven approaches to identify facilities that may pose elevated risks to worker safety and health.
While the specific changes from the previous directive are not detailed in the announcement, the issuance of an updated SST directive suggests modifications to OSHA's targeting criteria, inspection priorities, or enforcement procedures. Such updates typically reflect evolving workplace safety trends, new industry hazards, or lessons learned from previous enforcement activities.
The Site-Specific Targeting program has been a cornerstone of OSHA's enforcement strategy for years, allowing the agency to allocate its inspection resources more effectively across the millions of workplaces under its jurisdiction. The program typically uses injury and illness data, complaint patterns, and other risk indicators to identify facilities that warrant priority attention.
Employers subject to OSHA jurisdiction should review the new directive to understand any changes to targeting criteria that might affect their facilities. The directive may include updated data sources, revised risk algorithms, or modified inspection protocols that could impact how OSHA prioritizes enforcement activities.
The timing of this directive update comes as workplace safety continues to evolve, with new technologies, work arrangements, and industry practices creating both opportunities and challenges for worker protection. OSHA regularly updates its enforcement directives to ensure they remain effective in addressing current workplace hazards and safety challenges.
Industries that have historically been subject to Site-Specific Targeting include manufacturing, construction, healthcare, and other sectors with higher rates of workplace injuries or fatalities. The updated directive may modify how OSHA evaluates risk factors within these industries or introduce new targeting criteria based on emerging safety concerns.
Employers should note that being selected under the Site-Specific Targeting program does not necessarily indicate wrongdoing, but rather suggests that OSHA's data analysis has identified the workplace as having characteristics associated with higher safety risks. Facilities selected for SST inspections may receive comprehensive safety and health evaluations.
The directive's national scope means it will apply uniformly across all OSHA regions, ensuring consistent enforcement approaches regardless of geographic location. This standardization helps create predictable enforcement patterns while allowing regional offices to address local safety priorities within the broader SST framework.
Workplace safety advocates may view the directive update as evidence of OSHA's continued commitment to data-driven enforcement that focuses resources where they can have the greatest impact on worker protection. The agency's willingness to revise and update its targeting methodologies demonstrates responsiveness to changing workplace conditions and safety challenges.
For compliance professionals and safety managers, the new directive represents an opportunity to review their facilities' safety performance data and identify potential areas of concern that might attract OSHA attention. Proactive safety improvements can help reduce the likelihood of being selected for targeted inspections while simultaneously protecting workers.
The issuance of CPL 02-01-067 also reflects OSHA's broader enforcement priorities under the current administration, which has emphasized strengthening worker protection through enhanced regulatory oversight and enforcement activities. Updated targeting criteria may incorporate new data sources or analytical approaches that better identify high-risk workplaces.
Employers should expect that the updated Site-Specific Targeting methodology will continue to emphasize facilities with poor safety records, high injury rates, or patterns of serious violations. The program's fundamental goal remains directing OSHA's limited inspection resources toward workplaces where intervention can prevent the most worker injuries and illnesses.
As implementation of the new directive begins, employers and safety professionals should monitor for additional guidance from OSHA regarding specific targeting criteria or procedural changes. The agency typically provides supplementary materials to help stakeholders understand how new enforcement directives will be applied in practice.
The update to OSHA's Site-Specific Targeting directive underscores the dynamic nature of workplace safety enforcement and the need for employers to maintain current, comprehensive safety programs that address evolving regulatory expectations and enforcement priorities.