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Workplace safety audit checklist, including offices: sources and guidance

A walk-through audit for offices, warehouses and plants covering floors, stairs, exits, fire extinguishers, first aid and electrical equipment. OSHA's general industry rules require walking-working surfaces to be inspected regularly and as necessary and kept in a safe condition [13], and exit routes to be kept free and unobstructed [42].

How often: Walking-working surfaces are inspected regularly and as necessary; portable extinguishers get a monthly visual inspection. How often to run the full audit is set by your organization.[13][5]

Purpose

Use this workplace safety audit to walk an office, warehouse or plant floor and record the everyday hazards that OSHA's general industry rules address: floors and aisles, stairs and raised edges, exits, fire extinguishers, first aid and electrical equipment. It works as an office safety audit too: mark N/A for anything the area does not have, such as mezzanines or corrosive chemicals. Most checks are written from a specific rule, for example that walking-working surfaces are kept free of hazards such as spills, loose boards and protruding objects [12].

Who should use it

Office managers, facility managers, supervisors or safety committee members who know the area. No special qualification is needed for most checks, but repairs that involve the structural integrity of a floor or platform are performed or supervised by a qualified person [16]. Electrical faults found on the walk are best left to a qualified electrician.

How often

Walking-working surfaces are inspected regularly and as necessary [13], and portable fire extinguishers are visually inspected monthly [5]. How often to run this full audit is set by your organization; many workplaces pair it with the monthly extinguisher check.

How to use this checklist

  1. Choose the type of area, then walk it section by section. Answer from what you see, not from memory.
  2. Mark N/A only when the area does not have the item (no stairs, no ladders, no corrosives).
  3. Two checks are critical: a surface hazard that has not been repaired or guarded, and a defective ladder still in use. The rules say a hazardous surface is corrected or guarded before anyone uses it again [14] [15], and a defective ladder is tagged and removed from service [18] [17]. Deal with those before you leave the area.
  4. Record each hazard with its location, an owner and a date, and attach photos.

What the rules say

  • Workplaces, passageways and storerooms are kept clean, orderly and sanitary [10], and hazardous surface conditions are corrected or repaired before the surface is used again [14].
  • Flights of stairs with at least 3 treads and 4 risers have stair rail systems and handrails [21]; handrails are 30 to 38 inches (76 to 97 cm) high [24].
  • Exit route doors open from the inside without keys, tools or special knowledge [39]; exit access is at least 28 inches (71.1 cm) wide [40]; each exit is marked with an Exit sign [44].
  • Portable fire extinguishers are kept fully charged, operable and in their designated places [4].
  • Working space around electrical equipment is kept clear and not used for storage [26] [29], and flexible cords are not used as a substitute for fixed wiring [34].

Some checks, such as keeping heavy items on low shelves, using step stools instead of chairs, posting evacuation maps and not daisy-chaining power strips, are good practice or manufacturer instructions rather than specific OSHA rules; they are marked that way in the sources.

What this checklist does not cover

  • Machine guarding, lockout/tagout, powered trucks and other process-specific hazards; use a task checklist for those.
  • Chemical exposure, noise and other health hazards that need measurement.
  • Ergonomic assessment of individual workstations.
  • Detailed design of exit routes, fire alarm and sprinkler systems, and building code items.
  • Construction sites, which fall under 29 CFR Part 1926.
  • Rules of State Plan states that differ from federal OSHA.

Questions

What should an office safety audit check?

The same basics as any workplace, scaled to an office: floors free of spills and protruding objects [12], exit routes with nothing stored in them [42], extension cords not used as permanent wiring [34], clear space in front of electrical panels [29], and first aid supplies readily available [1].

How wide does an exit route need to be?

Exit access must be at least 28 inches (71.1 cm) wide at all points [40]. Objects that stick into the route, such as furniture or stored boxes, must not narrow it below the minimum width [41].

How much clear space is needed in front of an electrical panel?

The working space in front of the equipment is at least 30 inches (762 mm) wide, or the width of the equipment if that is greater [28], and it may not be used for storage [29]. The minimum depth of the space is given in Table S-1 of 29 CFR 1910.303 [27].

Can extension cords be used permanently?

No. Flexible cords may not be used as a substitute for the fixed wiring of a structure [34], run through holes in walls, ceilings or floors [35], or run through doorways or windows [36].

What happens when the audit finds a damaged floor or a broken ladder?

A hazardous walking surface is corrected or repaired before anyone uses it again, or guarded until it can be fixed [14] [15]. A ladder with structural or other defects is tagged "Dangerous: Do Not Use" or similar and removed from service [18] [17].

How often do fire extinguishers need to be checked?

A visual inspection every month [5] and a maintenance check every year [6].

Sources

Each cited excerpt was found word for word in the official text on the date shown.

  1. [1]29 CFR 1910.151 Medical services and first aid (b) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  2. [2]29 CFR 1910.151 Medical services and first aid (c) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  3. [3]29 CFR 1910.157 Portable fire extinguishers (c)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  4. [4]29 CFR 1910.157 Portable fire extinguishers (c)(4) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  5. [5]29 CFR 1910.157 Portable fire extinguishers (e)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  6. [6]29 CFR 1910.157 Portable fire extinguishers (e)(3) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  7. [7]29 CFR 1910.176 Handling materials: general (a) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  8. [8]29 CFR 1910.176 Handling materials - general (a) scope — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 25, 2026.
  9. [9]29 CFR 1910.176 Handling materials: general (b) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  10. [10]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (a)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  11. [11]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (a)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  12. [12]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (a)(3) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  13. [13]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (d)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  14. [14]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (d)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  15. [15]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (d)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  16. [16]29 CFR 1910.22 Walking-working surfaces: general requirements (d)(3) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  17. [17]29 CFR 1910.23 Ladders (b)(10) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  18. [18]29 CFR 1910.23 Ladders (b)(10) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  19. [19]29 CFR 1910.23 Ladders (b)(9) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  20. [20]29 CFR 1910.25 Stairways (b)(3) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  21. [21]29 CFR 1910.28 Duty to have fall protection and falling object protection (b)(11)(ii) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  22. [22]29 CFR 1910.28 Duty to have fall protection and falling object protection (b)(1)(i) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  23. [23]29 CFR 1910.29 Fall protection systems and falling object protection: criteria and practices (b)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  24. [24]29 CFR 1910.29 Fall protection systems and falling object protection: criteria and practices (f)(1)(i) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  25. [25]29 CFR 1910.303 Electrical: general requirements (f)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  26. [26]29 CFR 1910.303 Electrical: general requirements (g)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  27. [27]29 CFR 1910.303 Electrical: general requirements (g)(1)(i)(A) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  28. [28]29 CFR 1910.303 Electrical: general requirements (g)(1)(i)(B) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  29. [29]29 CFR 1910.303 Electrical: general requirements (g)(1)(ii) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  30. [30]29 CFR 1910.303 Electrical: general requirements (g)(2)(i) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  31. [31]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (b)(1)(ii) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  32. [32]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (b)(2)(i) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  33. [33]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (g)(1)(iv) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  34. [34]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (g)(1)(iv)(A) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  35. [35]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (g)(1)(iv)(B) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  36. [36]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (g)(1)(iv)(C) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  37. [37]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (g)(2)(ii) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  38. [38]29 CFR 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use (g)(2)(iii) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  39. [39]29 CFR 1910.36 Design and construction requirements for exit routes (d)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  40. [40]29 CFR 1910.36 Design and construction requirements for exit routes (g)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  41. [41]29 CFR 1910.36 Design and construction requirements for exit routes (g)(4) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  42. [42]29 CFR 1910.37 Maintenance, safeguards, and operational features for exit routes (a)(3) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  43. [43]29 CFR 1910.37 Maintenance, safeguards, and operational features for exit routes (b)(1) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  44. [44]29 CFR 1910.37 Maintenance, safeguards, and operational features for exit routes (b)(2) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  45. [45]29 CFR 1910.37 Maintenance, safeguards, and operational features for exit routes (b)(3) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.
  46. [46]29 CFR 1910.37 Maintenance, safeguards, and operational features for exit routes (b)(5) — eCFR (Office of the Federal Register). Retrieved September 24, 2026.

Guidance, not legal advice. It does not replace the law, the manufacturer's instructions or your organization's competent people.