The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) recordkeeping requirements have been in place since 1971 (29 Code of Federal Regulations CFR Part 1904). The requirements were updated in 2002 to make it easier for employers to comply. OSHA has again updated the recordkeeping rule for 2015 to include two key changes.

The first change 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. As of January 1, 2015, exempt industries will be based on the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). As a result of this movement to the NAICS classification, some industries that were previously covered will no longer be covered and some industries that were not previously covered will now be covered.

The second change expands the list of severe work-related injuries and illnesses that all covered employers must report to OSHA. This revision retains the current requirement to report all fatalities within 8 hours and adds the requirement to report all inpatient hospitalizations, amputations, and loss of an eye within 24 hours. Further, all related information must be properly recorded on the appropriate form.

Scope of Changes
Employers are classified by OSHA’s injury and illness recordkeeping requirements into one of three groups:

1. Employers regularly exempt from OSHA recordkeeping include small businesses with fewer than 11 full- or part-time employees during the previous calendar year and employers classified in low-hazard industries. These employers are required to report all inpatient hospitalizations and fatalities as required by 29 CFR 1904.39. In addition, if the employer is notified in writing by OSHA to participate in a statistical survey, the employer must maintain injury and illness records. 
2. Employers exempted from preparing and maintaining injury and illness records include industries listed in Appendix A of Subpart B of the revised recordkeeping standard.
3. Employers that are not classified under either of the two groups mentioned above are required to comply with all of the guidelines of 29 CFR 1904.

It is important to know your NAICS code and whether it is exempted in Appendix A of the revised rule.

Determining Recordability
Employers are responsible for reporting all recordable injuries and illnesses. If you are unable to determine if an injury or illness is recordable it is recommended that you contact the OSHA area office nearest you.

Injury or illness reporting assumes the individual reporting the injury or illness is an employee of the host employer. If the employee is a temporary employee from a temporary staffing agency, incidents are to be recorded in the host employer 300 log. The temporary staffing agency would be responsible for reporting workers’ compensation claims to the insurance carrier.

One of the most confusing aspects of OSHA recordkeeping is determining if an injury or illness is recordable based upon first aid or medical treatment. The revised standard sets new definitions of medical treatment and first aid to simplify recording decisions.

Medical Treatment: The management and care of a patient to combat disease or disorder. It does not include:

• Visits to practitioners for observation and/or evaluation only
• Diagnostic procedures (e.g., X-Rays, etc.)
• First aid treatment

First Aid: Treatments include but are not limited to:

• The use of nonprescription medication at nonprescription strength
• Tetanus immunizations
• Cleaning, flushing, or soaking surface wounds
• Use of wound coverings, butterfly bandages, or Steri-Strips
• Hot or cold therapy
• Use of non-rigid means of support
• Temporary immobilization devices used to transport victims

OSHA Forms
There are three forms that you should we aware of as an employer:

1. OSHA 300 Log
   The new OSHA 300 log is used by each employer’s establishment to record and maintain information about employee injuries and illnesses. An establishment, as defined by OSHA, is a single physical location where business is conducted or where services or industrial operations are performed. This establishment may be the place where employees report for work, operate from, or from which they are paid.  A mobile workforce, for those typically in construction, may either keep their own records or be part of the general contractor’s, depending on the reporting relationship. The following is a list of guidelines to use for maintaining an OSHA 300 log:
   • Maintain on a calendar year cycle (not fiscal).
   • Record cases within seven calendar days of receiving information that a recordable case has occurred.
   • Retain for five years following the calendar year to which it relates.
   • Maintain during those five years and add/or delete cases as necessary.
2. OSHA Form 301
   If an injury or illness is recordable, a supplementary form must be completed. This form provides more information about the case, including information such as the events leading up to the injury or illness, body parts affected, object(s) or substance(s) involved, etc. This information must be included on this form. This form may be OSHA 301 form, state Workers’ Compensation reports, insurance claim reports, or the employer’s accident report form. The following is a list of guidelines to use for maintaining supplementary records:
   • Record cases within seven calendar days of receiving information that a recordable case has occurred.
   • Keep the OSHA 301 form current within 45 days at any given time.
   • Each establishment must maintain an OSHA 301 or similar form.
   • Retain records for five years following the calendar year to which they relate.
3. OSHA Form 300A
   The employer is responsible for preparing an annual summary of injuries and illnesses that occurred during the calendar year. The annual summary, OSHA Form 300A, displays the totals from columns G through M of OSHA 300 Log. The summary also displays the calendar year covered, company’s name and address, company’s annual average number of employees, and total hours worked by all employees covered by the OSHA 300 Log. The 300A is a separate form and does not display any of the personal information shown on the OSHA 300 Log. The 300A also makes it easier to calculate metrics, such as the Total Case Incident Rate (TCIR) and the Days Away & Restricted Time (DART). The annual summary must be:
   • Posted by February 1 and remain posted until April 30
   • Posted in areas where other notices are normally placed
   • Certified (aka signed) by a company executive stating that the information is correct and complete to the best of the employer’s ability
   • Retained for five years following the calendar year to which they relate

If no cases are recorded during a reporting period, the summary must still be posted. Zeroes should be entered into all spaces provided on the 300A.

Recordkeeping Review
Maintaining accurate OSHA recordkeeping forms is not a difficult requirement if you follow the guidelines here.  There are many training options and other resources available to assist you with your efforts.  The bonus is that accurate records serve as a means of measuring the effectiveness of your goals to reduce work-related injuries and illnesses throughout the year. The records will also help you identify where the daily and more serious injuries and illnesses (i.e., lost and/or restricted days) are occurring. It also serves as the basis for establishing reduction goals and metrics for the following year.

Continually sharing this information with your management team will go a long way to assuring their support of your compliance efforts.

About the Author: 
Jack Fearing, CPEA, is the managing partner of Fearing International Group LLC, a global occupational safety and training consulting firm. He has more than 30 years of extensive experience in occupational safety and health compliance and is an OSHA-authorized 501 General Industry 10/30-hour instructor. For more information, contact: Jack Fearing, (908) 303-8359, jack@fearing-international.com