GAO Wants OSHA to Do More to Address Ergonomic Hazards in Growing e-Commerce Sector

OSHA must do more to address ergonomic hazards at warehouses and delivery companies, where the number of injured workers in the growing sector are on the rise, a new report shows.

The Government Accountability Office conducted a report on workplace safety in e-commerce workhouses and last-mile delivery companies. The office reviewed the types and causes of injuries and how OSHA identifies and addresses ergonomic hazards in these workplaces.

To quickly fill orders, e-commerce warehouses and delivery companies use technology to increase productivity and monitor worker performance. Questions have been raised about whether this use of technology, along with performance expectations, increases the risk of injuries in this growing sector.

The GAO was asked to review how technology affects worker safety at e-commerce warehouses and last-mile delivery companies. The office reviewed federal laws, regulations and guidance, data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics from 2018 through 2022 on injuries, and OSHA inspection data. The office also interviewed headquarters officials and staff at six area offices, and it conducted nongeneralizable surveys of workers and interviewed 15 stakeholder groups and five employers.

Three major hazards were found to be the cause of most of the injuries and illnesses experienced. These were identified as falls, slips and trips, objects or equipment, and overexertion.

Overexertion was found to be the most frequent cause of injury, with nearly 60,000 estimated serious injury cases for last-mile delivery, and more than 60,000 for general warehousing respectively.

The transportation and warehousing sector had the highest serious injury and illness rate of all 19 sectors in 2022. OSHA cited last-mile delivery and warehouse employers for over 2,500 workplace violations between the fiscal years of 2018-2023. 11 of these citations were related to ergonomic hazards, the report shows.

The GAO report states that efforts by OSHA to address ergonomic hazards in warehouses and last mile-delivery are limited due to problems such as outdated guidelines and insufficient training.

GAO recommendations in the report include:

• Ensure that OSHA compliance officers can easily obtain data during inspections on when musculoskeletal disorders occurred.
• Increase training on identifying and assessing ergonomic hazards for compliance officers who inspect worksites.
• Review and make changes to OSHA’s internal and publicly available guidance that compliance officers and employers use to identify, assess and address ergonomic hazards.
• Conduct timely follow-up with establishments that were issued an ergonomic hazard alert letter to determine if establishments have taken corrective actions.
• Evaluate how well OSHA’s national emphasis program for warehouses and distribution centers helps compliance officers identify, assess, and address ergonomic hazards; and determine and document next steps to correct any deficiencies detected.