Is OSHA 10 Required in Massachusetts?
Massachusetts requires OSHA Outreach training on public-works construction, not on private construction generally. The mandate is tied to the state's prevailing-wage contracting process rather than to a standalone occupational-safety statute, which is why the citation below points to a wage-and-hour law rather than a safety code.
Does Massachusetts require OSHA 10 on public-works projects?
Yes, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 30 Section 39S requires every employee at the worksite to complete an OSHA 10-hour Outreach Construction course on a public-works construction, installation, demolition, maintenance, or repair contract estimated to cost more than $10,000.
The statute names only the 10-hour course - it does not offer the 30-hour course as an alternative. Any employee found on a covered worksite without documentation of the 10-hour course is subject to immediate removal under subsection (b), and the Attorney General has the power to go to court to restrain the award or performance of a contract that violates the requirement under subsection (c).
Is there a private-sector OSHA 10 mandate in Massachusetts?
No, no Massachusetts statute requires OSHA 10 on private, non-public-works construction anywhere in the state; the Section 39S mandate applies specifically only to public-works construction contracts over the $10,000 estimated-cost threshold described above.
An employer or general contractor on a private Massachusetts job can still require OSHA 10 as a matter of hiring policy or contract terms, exactly as in a non-mandate state, but that would be a private requirement rather than a state law.
Does Massachusetts maintain its own approved-provider list?
No, Massachusetts publishes no state-specific OSHA-10 provider roster; the applicable roster is federal OSHA's own list of authorized online Outreach providers, the same 8-provider national list that applies to every state on this site.
This means a Massachusetts public-works contractor should verify a provider against OSHA's own federal roster, the same check used in every other state on this site, rather than looking for a Massachusetts-specific credential.
How much does OSHA 10 cost for a Massachusetts public-works worker?
Massachusetts prices are not different from the national price range: 3 of the 8 federally authorized providers publish a price for the 10-hour Construction course, ranging from $59.00 to $89.00.
| Provider | Price (10-hour Construction) | Verified |
|---|---|---|
| 360training / OSHAcampus | $59.99 (list $89.00) | 2026-09-19 |
| ClickSafety | $59.00 (list $89.00) | 2026-09-19 |
| HSI | $70 | 2026-09-19 |
| AdvanceOnline | see provider site for current price | - |
See Cost for the full national price table, including the 30-hour course.
Does Massachusetts operate its own state OSHA plan?
No, Massachusetts operates a State Plan covering only state and local government workers, not the general private-sector OSHA-10 mandate described above, which is governed instead by the public-works contracting statute.
Massachusetts is one of seven state plans of this narrower type (covering only state and local government workers), a separate fact from the public-works construction mandate under Section 39S, which applies regardless of that State Plan's own coverage boundary.
Related pages
- OSHA 10 Requirements by State - the full hub, with the comparison table of every mandate jurisdiction
- OSHA 10 Requirements: Hours, Tracks, and Card Rules - the federal baseline rules that apply on top of Massachusetts's statute
- OSHA 10 vs. OSHA 30 - full side-by-side comparison of the worker and supervisor levels
- Is OSHA 10 Required in Missouri? - another public-works mandate, with a stricter deadline and penalty schedule
- Approved Providers - the federal roster Massachusetts defers to
Sources
| Fact | Value | Authority | URL | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public-works mandate | M.G.L. c.30 Sec. 39S, contracts over $10,000 | Massachusetts General Court | https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIII/Chapter30/Section39S | 2026-09-19 |
| Course level accepted | 10-hour course only; the statute names no 30-hour alternative | Massachusetts General Court | https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIII/Chapter30/Section39S | 2026-09-19 |
| Enforcement mechanism | Immediate removal of a noncompliant employee; Attorney General may seek a court order restraining contract award or performance | Massachusetts General Court | https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIII/Chapter30/Section39S | 2026-09-19 |
| Provider roster used | Federal OSHA's own 8-provider list (no MA-specific roster) | U.S. Department of Labor, OSHA | https://www.osha.gov/training/outreach/training-providers | 2026-09-19 |
| 360training price | $59.99 (list $89.00) | 360training / OSHAcampus | https://www.360training.com/course/osha-10-hour-construction-training | 2026-09-19 |
| ClickSafety price | $59.00 (list $89.00) | ClickSafety | https://www.clicksafety.com/osha-10-construction | 2026-09-19 |
| HSI price | $70 | HSI | https://hsi.com/solutions/osha-10-30-online-training | 2026-09-19 |
| Demolition scope | Covered work under the statute explicitly includes "construction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair" - no demolition carve-out | Massachusetts General Court | https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIII/Chapter30/Section39S | 2026-09-19 |
Frequently asked questions
Does the $10,000 threshold apply to the whole project or one trade's portion of it?
The threshold applies to the estimated cost of the public-works contract itself; Section 39S does not name a trade-specific carve-out within that contract-level threshold.
Can a worker use an OSHA-10 card completed for a job in a different state on a Massachusetts public-works project?
Yes, the underlying federal card is not state-specific, so a card completed while working elsewhere satisfies the Massachusetts public-works requirement the same way it would satisfy any other state's mandate, since Section 39S does not require the course to have been taken in Massachusetts.
Is OSHA 30 ever specifically required instead of OSHA 10 in Massachusetts?
No. Section 39S itself names only the 10-hour Outreach course; an individual general contractor could still set a stricter 30-hour requirement for supervisors as a matter of its own contract terms, but that would be a private requirement layered on top of the statute, not something the statute itself demands.
Who checks whether a Massachusetts public-works contractor actually complied?
Section 39S requires proof of the 10-hour course with the first certified payroll report for each employee, and an employee found on site without that documentation is subject to immediate removal; the Attorney General or a designee also has the power to go to court to restrain the award or performance of a contract that violates the requirement.
Does Massachusetts require OSHA-10 for demolition work the same way as new construction?
Yes. Section 39S's own definition of covered work reaches "construction, installation, demolition, maintenance or repair of any building by a public agency," with no separate carve-out or lighter rule for demolition. A demolition project that independently meets Section 39S's own $10,000 threshold is covered the same way as a new-construction project.