Texas — Workplace Safety

Texas does not operate an OSHA-approved state plan. Federal OSHA has direct jurisdiction over most private sector workers in the state. State and local government workers are not covered by federal OSHA and have no equivalent state-level OSHA protection in Texas.

Source: OSHA State Plans

Texas imposes a statutory duty on covered employers to maintain safe and healthful workplaces under Texas Labor Code § 411.103, which is part of Chapter 411 (Workers' Health and Safety). This state-law obligation operates in parallel with federal OSHA requirements for private-sector employers.

Covered employers

Chapter 411 applies to two categories of employers under Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002:

1. Employers with workers' compensation insurance — Any employer who obtains workers' compensation insurance coverage is subject to Chapter 411, regardless of workforce size.

1. Non-subscriber employers with 5+ employees — An employer who does not carry workers' compensation insurance is subject to Chapter 411 if the employer employs five or more employees who are not exempt from workers' compensation insurance coverage.

Because workers' compensation insurance is elective in Texas (except for certain public employers), many private employers opt not to purchase coverage and are known as "non-subscribers." Non-subscribers with fewer than five non-exempt employees are not subject to Chapter 411's safe-workplace duty, though they remain subject to federal OSHA if they are private-sector employers.

Three-prong duty under § 411.103

Each covered employer must satisfy all three of the following statutory requirements:

1. Provide and maintain reasonably safe and healthful employment and workplace — The employer must ensure that both the employment relationship and the physical place of employment are reasonably safe and healthful for employees.

1. Install, maintain, and use necessary safety methods, processes, devices, and safeguards — This prong requires the employer to adopt methods of sanitation and hygiene and to deploy processes, devices, and safeguards that are "reasonably necessary to protect the life, health, and safety of the employer's employees."

1. Take all other reasonably necessary actions — The employer must take any additional actions reasonably necessary to make the employment and place of employment safe. This is a catch-all provision that captures safety measures not enumerated in prongs (1) and (2).

The statute uses the "reasonably necessary" standard throughout, which gives employers some discretion but also requires affirmative steps to identify and mitigate workplace hazards. The obligation is ongoing ("provide and maintain"; "install, maintain, and use").

Relationship to federal OSHA and enforcement

Chapter 411 is a state-law overlay; it does not displace federal OSHA, which retains direct jurisdiction over private-sector employers in Texas because Texas has no OSHA-approved state plan. Section 411.109 provides that Chapter 411 shall be given effect alongside other occupational health and safety laws "to the extent possible."

The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation (TDI-DWC) administers Chapter 411. Enforcement under Chapter 411 generally does not resemble federal OSHA's citation and penalty system for employers. Instead, enforcement focuses on the adequacy of accident prevention services provided by workers' compensation insurance carriers (see Tex. Lab. Code § 411.061, § 411.068) and periodic inspection of those services by TDI-DWC. If a carrier fails to maintain or use required accident prevention services, TDI-DWC may designate such failures as administrative violations, which can lead to administrative penalties under broader provisions of the Texas Labor Code and implementing regulations (see 28 Tex. Admin. Code § 166.2). TDI-DWC may also investigate employer accident prevention programs and respond to safety complaints, but direct penalties for individual employer safety violations (comparable to OSHA citations) are rare and typically addressed under more general administrative enforcement mechanisms described elsewhere in this guide.

Chapter 411 also establishes a safety hotline (§ 411.081) and prohibits employer retaliation against employees who report safety violations (§ 411.082), with judicial relief available (§ 411.083).

Exclusion during labor disputes

Section 411.110 carves out an unusual exemption: Chapter 411 does not apply to a workplace while that workplace is subject to picketing, a strike, slowdown, or other work stoppage. The legislature declared that Chapter 411 "may not be used as an issue involved in a labor dispute" or "asserted to advantage in collective bargaining."

Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.103 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.068 Source: 28 Tex. Admin. Code § 166.2 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.109 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.110

Overview of penalty authority and agency enforcement Texas Labor Code § 411.103 requires covered employers to provide a reasonably safe and healthful workplace. The statute itself does not specify penalties or lay out direct enforcement procedures for violations of this duty. However, the Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation (TDI-DWC), treats violations of this requirement as administrative violations when discovered.

Administrative violations and penalty framework According to official TDI-DWC guidance, employer noncompliance with workplace safety obligations—including the § 411.103 duty—"may be subject to administrative penalties." This is confirmed in the TDI-DWC Employer Rights and Responsibilities fact sheet. The agency's penalty authority is rooted in Texas Labor Code Chapter 415. Section 415.025 authorizes TDI-DWC to assess administrative penalties for violations of the Workers’ Compensation Act (Title 5 of the Labor Code), which includes Chapter 411, up to $25,000 per day, per occurrence.

Penalty process and enforcement mechanism Administrative enforcement generally follows the procedures set out in Texas Administrative Code Chapter 180. When TDI-DWC identifies an administrative violation, it may issue a Notice of Violation (NOV). The employer is then afforded an opportunity to respond before penalties are assessed. However, the published rules and agency publications do not detail penalty schedules or specific enforcement precedents targeted solely at violations of the § 411.103 safe-workplace duty. Most TDI-DWC enforcement focuses on employer compliance with insurance-related duties or procedural obligations, rather than direct safety-citation actions comparable to federal OSHA.

In summary: While TDI-DWC has statutory authority to penalize employers for breaching the general safe-workplace duty under Chapter 411, the exercise of that authority is infrequent and procedurally governed by more general administrative enforcement rules. No penalty schedule specific to § 411.103 is published as of 2026.

Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.103 Source: TDI-DWC Employer Rights and Responsibilities Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 415.025 Source: 28 Tex. Admin. Code Ch. 180

Elements and coverage Texas Labor Code § 411.082 prohibits an employer from suspending or terminating—or taking other adverse action against—an employee who, in good faith, makes a report by telephone to the Texas Workers' Compensation safety hotline about a violation of occupational health and safety law (state or federal).

Protected activity: The employee must make the report in good faith, and through the prescribed telephone reporting mechanism (the hotline authorized by Labor Code § 411.081). Mere internal complaints or informal reports are not covered—the report must use the specified hotline. Prohibited retaliation: The statute bars suspension, termination, or other adverse employment actions because of the employee’s protected report.

Procedure and forum

• An employee who is retaliated against may file a civil action for relief under § 411.083. The cause of action is brought in a state court of competent jurisdiction. There is no administrative exhaustion requirement; employees can go directly to court.

Remedies If the court finds for the employee, available remedies include:

• Reinstatement to their former position
• Back pay (lost wages)
• Restoration of lost fringe benefits or seniority rights
• Attorneys’ fees and court costs (employee’s fees, not employer)

Statute of limitations The employee must file suit within 90 days of the alleged violation (§ 411.083(c)). This is a hard deadline—suits filed even a day late are barred.

Notes/texture:

• The retaliation protections apply to reports of any occupational health and safety law violation (state or federal), but only when the report is made through the official safety hotline.
• Retaliation for other forms of workplace safety complaints (internal, non-hotline, or OSHA-filed) may be protected by other statutes, but not § 411.082.

Source: Tex. Lab. Code §§ 411.082–411.083

Applicability of Texas Labor Code Chapter 411 to state and local government employers

Texas Labor Code Chapter 411 establishes workplace safety obligations for employers, and this coverage expressly includes many public-sector (state and local government) employers, but with some statutory nuances.

Coverage thresholds and public employer obligations:

• Under Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002, Chapter 411 applies to any "employer who obtains workers’ compensation insurance coverage" (subsection a). For public-sector employers, certain state agencies and political subdivisions (such as counties, cities, and school districts) are permitted or required by law to self-insure for workers’ compensation (see Tex. Lab. Code § 504.011 for guidance on governmental entities). Chapter 411 thus applies to public-sector employers if they participate in the workers’ compensation system either through purchase or authorized self-insurance.

• For employers not required to provide coverage: Chapter 411 applies if they have five or more employees who are not exempt from coverage (Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002(b)). The law does not exclude government entities from these thresholds; rather, certain provisions of the Labor Code address public employers separately, particularly in relation to their insurance arrangements and reporting obligations.

• The definition of "employer" in Tex. Lab. Code § 411.102 does not exclude government employers: it includes any person (entity) that "makes a contract of hire for compensation, express or implied, written or oral."

No federal OSHA for public sector—state law fills the gap:

Texas does not have an OSHA-approved state plan, and federal OSHA explicitly does not cover state or local government employees (29 U.S.C. § 652(5)). As a result, for public-sector employers in Texas, workplace safety duties are primarily governed by Chapter 411 if the employer is subject to its provisions (see above). While other narrowly targeted statutes (such as building codes or specific hazard statutes) might impose safety-related requirements, there is no separate, overarching state OSHA-equivalent statute for government workers. Chapter 411 provides the main statutory workplace safety duty for public-sector workplaces not reached by federal OSHA.

Effective dates and administrative notes:

Chapter 411 has applied in its current form to public and private employers since the major Texas Workers’ Compensation Reform of 1989 (Acts 1989, 71st Leg., ch. 1, effective January 1, 1991), and its definitions and thresholds have not materially changed as of 2026.

Bottom line: State and local government employers participating in Texas’s workers’ compensation system (either through purchase or authorized self-insurance) are subject to Chapter 411. For public-sector workplaces outside federal OSHA’s reach, Chapter 411 provides the primary state-law workplace safety duty, with additional specific obligations possible under other statutes depending on particular circumstances.

Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.102 Source: 29 U.S.C. § 652(5) Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 504.011

Under Texas Labor Code § 411.083, an employee who prevails in a retaliation claim for reporting workplace safety violations by using the designated state safety hotline (as protected under § 411.082) is entitled to specific remedies and must comply with a short statute of limitations.

Remedies available to the employee If a court finds that an employer suspended or terminated an employee in violation of § 411.082, the statute expressly authorizes the following relief:

• Reinstatement to the former position — The court may order the employer to reinstate the employee to the job held prior to the retaliation.
• Compensation for lost wages — The employee is entitled to payment for wages lost due to the period of unlawful suspension or termination.
• Restoration of benefits and seniority rights — The employee may recover all fringe benefits and seniority rights lost as a result of the retaliatory action.
• Court costs and attorney’s fees — If the employee prevails, the court must award court costs and reasonable attorney’s fees to the employee (not the employer).

Statute of limitations A retaliation claim under § 411.083 must be filed no later than the 90th day after the date the alleged violation occurred or was discovered, or should have been discovered with reasonable diligence. This is a strict limitation period; claims filed after the 90-day window are barred by statute. There is no exhaustion requirement or agency prerequisite—employees may file directly in court.

Summary: The remedies are strictly statutory: reinstatement, back pay, restoration of employment benefits, and recovery of the employee’s attorney’s fees and court costs. The 90-day limitations period is short and strictly construed under the statutory language.

Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.083

Applicability of Texas Labor Code Chapter 411 to public employers (state and local government)

Under Texas Labor Code Chapter 411, certain state and local government entities—such as agencies, counties, cities, and school districts—can be subject to workplace safety obligations, but coverage follows statutory thresholds and is not all-encompassing.

Who is covered?

• Workers’ Compensation Insured/Public Self-Insurance: Chapter 411 applies to any employer, including government entities, that obtains workers’ compensation insurance (Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002(a)). For public employers, Texas law provides parallel mechanisms for obtaining coverage via self-insurance or coverage through risk pools, particularly under Tex. Lab. Code § 504.011, which governs workers’ compensation for governmental entities.

• Non-Subscribers with 5+ Employees: Employers—including public entities—who do not secure workers’ compensation coverage are covered by Chapter 411 if they employ five or more employees who are not exempt (Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002(b)). The statute does not explicitly exclude public-sector employers from this threshold, but § 504.011 tailors the workers’ compensation framework for political subdivisions in some respects.

• Definition of "Employer": The definition in Tex. Lab. Code § 411.102 does not carve out government entities, defining "employer" broadly as any person or entity making a contract of hire for compensation.

Limits/exclusions:

• While many public sector employers are thus subject to Chapter 411 if they participate in workers’ compensation or meet the threshold as a non-subscriber, specialized statutes or local arrangements could alter obligations for specific governmental units. § 504.011, for instance, customizes elements of the system for political subdivisions rather than creating a categorical exemption from Chapter 411.

• There is no Texas state-law equivalent to OSHA that uniquely applies to all public employers, and federal OSHA does not extend to state/local government workplaces in Texas (29 U.S.C. § 652(5)). If a public employer does not participate in the workers’ comp system and does not meet the employee-count threshold, it may fall outside Chapter 411’s explicit safe-workplace requirements, although other safety duties might apply case-by-case.

Summary: Most public employers in Texas will have workplace safety obligations under Chapter 411 if they either participate in workers’ compensation (by purchase or authorized self-insurance) or employ five or more non-exempt employees and do not provide coverage. The Labor Code provides specialized rules for governmental entities but does not wholesale exempt the public sector from coverage. Where coverage does not attach, there is no general state-law OSHA-equivalent for government workplaces.

Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.002 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 411.102 Source: Tex. Lab. Code § 504.011 Source: 29 U.S.C. § 652(5)

Texas does not administer an OSHA-approved state plan; federal OSHA standards establish industry- and hazard-specific requirements for most private employers in the state. However, Texas overlays several state-level safety requirements beyond the general duty set by Labor Code § 411.103.

Employer safety program mandates — workers' compensation context

The Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers’ Compensation (TDI-DWC), has authority to require certain employers to adopt formal safety programs. For example, under 28 Tex. Admin. Code § 114.6, employers with high workers’ compensation claim rates may be ordered to implement accident prevention plans or risk management programs. This rule gives TDI-DWC explicit authority to impose safety program requirements on individual employers in response to identified injury patterns or high claim frequency. Covered employers must follow accident prevention standards prescribed by TDI-DWC, including written policies, supervisor training, and periodic safety audits. While this regulation is not industry-specific by default, it results in targeted safety oversight for employers with elevated risk.

Hazard-specific guidance — DWC publications

The Texas DWC also publishes hazard-specific guidance addressing leading causes of serious injury in Texas workplaces, such as heat illness, fall prevention, and trenching safety. While these documents (such as DWC bulletins) are not statutes or regulations, they reflect the state’s recognized best practices for mitigating particular risks and may be referenced in accident prevention consultations. For example, DWC provides detailed recommendations for heat illness prevention, including acclimatization procedures, hydration breaks, and emergency protocols—mirroring federal OSHA, but tailored to Texas climate and incident patterns.

No Texas codified hazard- or industry-specific standards

Unlike some states, Texas statutes and rules do not create a parallel catalogue of codified, industry-specific safety standards (e.g., for construction, general industry, agriculture) beyond the authority provided under Chapter 411 and the referenced accident prevention program rules. Most technical safety standards (for ladder use, electrical work, chemical exposure, etc.) are adopted and enforced under federal OSHA in Texas private-sector employment.

Summary: While Texas largely relies on federal requirements, it does impose targeted state-level workplace safety program mandates on high-risk employers (TAC § 114.6) and issues hazard-specific guidance through TDI-DWC publications, which are advisory but influential. Employers should monitor both federal OSHA and TDI-DWC developments for compliance.

Source: 28 Tex. Admin. Code § 114.6 Source: TDI-DWC Safety Resources — Prevent Fatal Falls Source: TDI-DWC Publications on Heat Stress