Introduction to OSHA

What is the Introduction to OSHA?

The Introduction to OSHA course from the American Institute of Safety Professionals provides a comprehensive orientation to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration: what it is, how it operates, how it creates and enforces standards, and what employers and workers need to understand about the regulatory framework that governs workplace safety in the United States. This is the course that answers the question everyone in safety needs answered first: how does the OSHA system work?

Before you can comply with OSHA standards, manage OSHA inspections, or exercise OSHA-protected rights, you must understand the system itself. How was OSHA created? What is its authority? How does a hazard become an enforceable standard? What is the difference between a federal OSHA state and a state-plan state? What triggers an OSHA inspection, and what happens during one? What are the types of citations, and how are penalties calculated? What is the General Duty Clause, and when does it apply instead of a specific standard? What is the OSHA consultation programme, and how can employers use it without triggering enforcement? This course answers every one of these questions with the clarity and practical focus that safety professionals, supervisors, HR managers, and business owners need.

The curriculum covers the history of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the workplace conditions that led to the law, the political context, and the creation of OSHA, NIOSH, and OSHRC), OSHA’s organisational structure (national office, regional offices, area offices), federal OSHA versus state-plan states (the 22 states and territories with their own programmes), the OSHA standards development process (how standards are proposed, how public comment works, and how final rules are published in the Code of Federal Regulations), the structure of 29 CFR 1910 and 1926 (how to navigate the standards by Subpart), the General Duty Clause and its application, the OSHA inspection process from opening conference through walkaround to closing conference, citation types and penalty calculations, the informal conference and formal contest processes, employer rights during and after inspections, OSHA’s consultation programme (free, confidential, separate from enforcement), and the OSHA resources available to employers and workers.

All training is delivered 100 percent online through Microsoft Teams and the American Institute of Safety Professionals Learning Management System (LMS). Upon successful completion, graduates receive an American Institute of Safety Professionals certificate, professional wallet card, and official transcript, all employer-verifiable at amiosp.com/student-verifications.

Who should take this course?

• New safety professionals entering the field who need to understand the regulatory system they will work within
• Business owners and executives who are legally responsible for OSHA compliance but lack regulatory knowledge
• Supervisors and managers who interact with OSHA during inspections and must understand the process
• HR managers who manage injury reporting, recordkeeping, and post-citation processes
• International safety professionals unfamiliar with the US OSHA system who need a structured orientation
• Legal and compliance professionals who advise organisations on OSHA matters
• Anyone preparing for the 10-Hour or 30-Hour programmes who wants the regulatory context first

What will you study?

Credentials employers can verify in seconds