Editor's note: This post was completely revamped and updated in September 2018 for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that many organizations post OSHA logs of recordable employee injuries and illnesses from the previous calendar year by February 1. This article provides details on which injury and illnesses are recordable.
To learn about the basics of OSHA recordkeeping, check out our Ultimate OSHA Recordkeeping Guide. You can also download our guide for free here:
According to OSHA, work-related incidents must be recorded on the applicable recordkeeping logs if they involve any of the following circumstances:
OSHA has a list on its website of all recordable injuries and fatalities, which includes those that result in death, days away from work, medical treatment beyond first-aid, loss of consciousness, acute or chronic illness, and more.
There are also incidents that don't result in injuries and illnesses that don't have to be recorded on your recordkeeping logs but are important to be aware of as well. Cases involving food and beverages, common colds or flu, blood donations, exercise programs, and injuries treated through first-aid do not need to be recorded. To assist employers, OSHA has posted a clear definition of first-aid treatments.
In May of 2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a final rule “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses.” This ruling requires establishments with 250 or more employees, as well as establishments with 20 or more employees in high-risk industries, to electronically submit their 300A Form data to OSHA on an annual basis using the agency’s Injury Tracking Application (ITA).
Starting in 2019 and continuing for each year thereafter, covered establishments must submit 300A form data collected in the previous calendar year by March 2.
Initially, the final rule would have required establishments with 250 or more employees to electronically submit additional injury and illness data from Forms 300 and 301, as well. However, on July 30, 2018, OSHA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which rescinds the agency's previous requirement for establishments with 250 or more employees to electronically submit Forms 300 and 301.
As a result, covered organizations only need to electronically submit 300A form data annually on March 2.
If you maintain OSHA logs for your organization, you'll be happy to know that there is safety software available to make it easier for you to report workplace EHS accidents and generate your recordkeeping logs.
Vector EHS Management Software automatically calculates total hours worked, total missed and restricted days for each location. Safety managers can easily generate 300, 300A, and 301 logs for both single and multiple locations from Vector EHS Management. In addition, EHS professionals can also use Vector EHS to generate 300A logs in a CSV file format, compatible with OSHA's electronic submission requirements.
