Tuesday, December 30, 2014

REMINDER: OSHA ANNOUNCES NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTING SEVERE INJURIES AND UPDATES LIST OF INDUSTRIES EXEMPT FROM RECORD-KEEPING REQUIREMENTS. THEY GO INTO EFFECT JANUARY 1, 2015



OSHA announces new requirements for reporting severe injuries and updates list of industries exempt from record-keeping requirements.  THEY GO INTO EFFECT JANUARY 1, 2015




Sept. 11, 2014







WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration today announced a final rule requiring employers to notify OSHA when an employee is killed on the job or suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye. The rule, which also updates the list of employers partially exempt from OSHA record-keeping requirements, will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2015, for workplaces under federal OSHA jurisdiction.




The announcement follows preliminary results from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2013 National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries*.



"Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 4,405 workers were killed on the job in 2013. We can and must do more to keep America's workers safe and healthy," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. "Workplace injuries and fatalities are absolutely preventable, and these new requirements will help OSHA focus its resources and hold employers accountable for preventing them." 




Under the revised rule, employers will be required to notify OSHA of work-related fatalities within eight hours, and work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations or losses of an eye within 24 hours. Previously, OSHA's regulations required an employer to report only work-related fatalities and in-patient hospitalizations of three or more employees. Reporting single hospitalizations, amputations or loss of an eye was not required under the previous rule.




All employers covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Act, even those who are exempt from maintaining injury and illness records, are required to comply with OSHA's new severe injury and illness reporting requirements. To assist employers in fulfilling these requirements, OSHA is developing a Web portal for employers to report incidents electronically, in addition to the phone reporting options. 




"Hospitalizations and amputations are sentinel events, indicating that serious hazards are likely to be present at a workplace and that an intervention is warranted to protect the other workers at the establishment," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. 




In addition to the new reporting requirements, OSHA has also updated the list of industries that, due to relatively low occupational injury and illness rates, are exempt from the requirement to routinely keep injury and illness records. The previous list of exempt industries was based on the old Standard Industrial Classification system and the new rule uses the North American Industry Classification System to classify establishments by industry. The new list is based on updated injury and illness data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The new rule maintains the exemption for any employer with 10 or fewer employees, regardless of their industry classification, from the requirement to routinely keep records of worker injuries and illnesses. 




For more information about the new rule, visit OSHA's website at http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping2014.




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"OSHA will now receive crucial reports of fatalities and severe work-related injuries and illnesses that will significantly enhance the agency’s ability to target our resources to save lives and prevent further injury and illness. This new data will enable the agency to identify the workplaces where workers are at the greatest risk and target our compliance assistance and enforcement resources accordingly."




— Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, Dr. David Michaels



The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s revised recordkeeping rule includes two key changes:




First, the rule updates the list of industries that are exempt from the requirement to routinely keep OSHA injury and illness records, due to relatively low occupational injury and illness rates. The previous list of industries was based on the old Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system and injury and illness data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from 1996, 1997, and 1998. The new list of industries that are exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records is based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and injury and illness data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from 2007, 2008, and 2009. Note: The new rule retains the exemption for any employer with ten or fewer employees, regardless of their industry classification, from the requirement to routinely keep records. 




Second, the rule expands the list of severe work-related injuries that all covered employers must report to OSHA. The revised rule retains the current requirement to report all work-related fatalities within 8 hours and adds the requirement to report all work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and loss of an eye within 24 hours to OSHA.




Establishments located in States under Federal OSHA jurisdiction must begin to comply with the new requirements on January 1, 2015. Establishments located in states that operate their own safety and health programs (State Plan States) should check with their state plan for the implementation date of the new requirements. OSHA encourages the states to implement the new coverage provisions on 1/1/2015, but some may not be able to meet this tight deadline.




The final rule will allow OSHA to focus its efforts more effectively to prevent fatalities and serious work-related injuries and illnesses. The final rule will also improve access by employers, employees, researchers and the public to information about workplace safety and health and increase their ability to identify and abate serious hazards.







OSHA's updated recordkeeping rule expands the list of severe injuries that employers must report to OSHA. 




As of January 1, 2015, all employers must report



  1. All work-related fatalities within 8 hours.
  2. All work-related inpatient hospitalizations, all amputations and all losses of an eye within 24 hours.



You can report to OSHA by



  1. Calling OSHA’s free and confidential number at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742).
  2. Calling your closest Area Office during normal business hours.
  3. Using the new online form that will soon be available.



Only fatalities occurring within 30 days of the work-related incident must be reported to OSHA. Further, for an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye, these incidents must be reported to OSHA only if they occur within 24 hours of the work-related incident.



More information on new reporting requirements.



OSHA's updated recordkeeping rule expands the list of severe injuries that employers must report to OSHA.



As of January 1, 2015, all employers must report



  1. All work-related fatalities within 8 hours.
  2. All work-related inpatient hospitalizations, all amputations and all losses of an eye within 24 hours.



You can report to OSHA by



  1. Calling OSHA’s free and confidential number at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742).
  2. Calling your closest Area Office during normal business hours.
  3. Using the new online form that will soon be available.



Only fatalities occurring within 30 days of the work-related incident must be reported to OSHA. Further, for an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye, these incidents must be reported to OSHA only if they occur within 24 hours of the work-related incident.










OSHA regulations require certain employers to routinely keep records of serious employee injuries and illnesses. However, there are two classes of employers that are partially exempt from routinely keeping records. First, employers with ten or fewer employees at all times during the previous calendar year are exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records. OSHA’s revised recordkeeping regulation maintains this exemption.



Second, establishments in certain low-hazard industries are also exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records. Since 1982, this list has been comprised of establishments in the divisions of retail trade; finance, insurance and real estate; and the service industry if the three year average lost workday case rate for their major industry group was 75 percent or less of the overall three year average of the lost workday case rate for private industry. OSHA’s revised recordkeeping regulation provides an updated list of low-hazard industries that are exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records. The new list of exempt industries is now classified by North American Industry Classification System (NAICS), which is the standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. The injury and illness rate threshold is based on more recent BLS data. 




Who Keeps Records



Under OSHA's recordkeeping regulation, certain covered employers are required to prepare and maintain records of serious occupational injuries and illnesses using the OSHA 300 Log. This information is important for employers, workers and OSHA in evaluating the safety of a workplace, understanding industry hazards, and implementing worker protections to reduce and eliminate hazards.




However, there are two classes of employers that are partially exempt from routinely keeping injury and illness records.  First, employers with ten or fewer employees at all times during the previous calendar year are exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records.  OSHA's revised recordkeeping regulation maintains this exemption.




Second, establishments in certain low-hazard industries are also partially exempt from routinely keeping OSHA injury and illness records. Starting on January 1, 2015 there will be a new list of industries that will be partially exempt from keeping OSHA records. 



The previous list of partially exempt industries was based on the old Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) system and injury and illness data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from 1996, 1997, and 1998. The new list of partially exempt industries in the updated rule (link) is based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and injury and illness data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) from 2007, 2008, and 2009.  







To find out if you are required to prepare and maintain records under the updated rule, first determine your NAICS code by:



  1. Using the search feature at the U.S. Census Bureau NAICS main webpage.  In the search box for the most recent NAICS, enter a keyword that describes your business. Choose the primary business activity that most closely corresponds to you, or refine your search to get more choices.
  2. Viewing the most recent complete NAICS tables on the U.S. Census Bureau NAICS main webpage. Select the two-digit sector code and choose a six-digit industry code to read its definition.
  3. Using an old SIC code to find your NAICS code using the detailed conversion tables on the U.S. Census Bureau Concordances page.
  4. Contacting your nearest OSHA office or State agency for help.



Once you have found your NAICS code, you can use the following table to determine if your industry is exempt from the recordkeeping rule.






NOTE: Establishments in companies with 10 or fewer employees at all times in the previous year continue to be exempt from keeping OSHA records, regardless of their industry classification.  The partial exemption for size is based on the number of employees in the entire company.







The OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping forms are:



  • the Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses (OSHA Form 300),
  • the Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses (OSHA Form 300A), and
  • the Injury and Illness Incident  Report (OSHA Form 301).



Employers must fill out the Log and the Incident Report only if a recordable work-related injury or illness has occurred. Employers must fill out and post the Summary annually, even if no recordable work-related injuries or illnesses occurred during the year.



Forms 300, 300A, 301 and Instructions – Fillable Format [PDF* 2MB] Forms 300, 300A, 301 (Forms only) – Fillable Format [PDF* 2MB] Forms 300, 300A, 301 and Instructions [PDF* 462KB] Forms 300, 300A, 301 (Forms only) [PDF* 167KB] Forms 300, 300A, 301 Excel format does not include instructions [XLS* 150KB]




In place of the OSHA forms, employers may also use equivalent forms (forms that have the same information, are as readable and understandable, and are completed using the same instructions as the OSHA forms they replace). Many employers use an insurance form instead of the Incident Report, or supplement an insurance form by adding information required by OSHA.




Fact sheet on who must keep records [PDF*]



FAQs on who must keep records