United States

Reporting Accidents/Incidents
The recording and reporting requirements for occupational fatalities, injuries and illnesses is detailed within OSHA General Industry
Regulations 29 CFR 1904, which also cover OSHA requirements on recordkeeping, reporting and posting. The Regulations are made up of
subparts as follows:

• Subpart A - Purpose.

• Subpart B - Scope.

• Subpart C - Recordkeeping Forms and Recording Criteria.

• Subpart D - Other OSHA Injury and Illness Recordkeeping Requirements.

• Subpart E - Reporting Fatality, Injury and Illness Information to the Government.

Where employers have employed 10 or less people during the previous calendar year, they are generally exempt from the requirements for keeping
OSHA illness and injury records, unless told otherwise by OSHA or the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). However, as required by 1904.39, all
employers covered by the OSH Act must report to OSHA any work-related incident that results in a fatality, the in-patient hospitalisation of one or
more employees, an employee amputation, or an employee loss of an eye.

The limit of 10 employees is applied to the whole company (not individual workplaces) and must not have been exceeded at any point during the
previous calendar year.

The above exemption also applies to employers who operate business in certain industries, e.g. low-hazard industries in the retail, commercial,
finance, insurance, real estate and service sectors. A full list of exempt industries can be found in Appendix A of Subpart B based on their NAICS
code (North American Industry Classification System).

If any of the employer’s individual workplaces fall outside of the exemption, then they must comply with OSHA’s reporting and record keeping
requirements for the whole organisation.

Recordkeeping - Every employer covered by OSHA that has more than ten employees and operates in a non-exempt business must maintain
OSHA-specified records for new cases of work-related fatalities, diseases and injuries, e.g. using the OSHA 300, 300A and 301 logs (or state equiv-
alent). OSHA requires employers to record new cases of:

• Death.

• Days away from work.

• Restricted work or transfer to another job.

• Medical treatment beyond first aid.

• Loss of consciousness.

• Diagnosis of a significant injury or illness by a physician or licensed healthcare provider.

• Certain other specific outcomes, such as needlestick injuries, work-related tuberculosis, hearing loss and removal under a medical surveillance
programme.

Extensive information on the definitions of the above categories and what to record in the individual OSHA logs is given within 1904.7 (General
recording criteria) and should be studied closely.

The forms to be used for recording and reporting occupational injuries and illnesses are:

• OSHA 300 - the Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses.

• OSHA 300-A - the Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses.

• OSHA 301 - the Injury and Illness Incident Report.

All can be Downloaded (With Explanatory Notes), and detailed requirements for completing the forms are listed within 1904.29 (Forms).

Employers must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the
resulting condition, or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from
events or exposures occurring in the work environment, unless an exception listed within 1904.5(b)(2) specifically applies. Various guidance on
‘work-relatedness’ are given within 1904.5, including where injuries and illnesses caused when travelling can be considered as work-related.

Cases must be considered as new cases where the employee has not previously experienced a recorded injury or illness of the same type affecting
the same part of the body, or previously experienced a recorded injury or illness of the same type affecting the same part of the body but had
recovered completely from the previous injury or illness (all signs and symptoms had disappeared).

Various clarifications on new cases are defined within 1906.06, e.g. for occupational illnesses where the signs or symptoms may recur or continue
in the absence of an exposure in the workplace, the case must only be recorded once (e.g. occupational cancer, asbestosis etc.). However, when
an employee experiences the signs/symptoms of an injury/illness from an event/exposure in the workplace, such as an episode of occupational
asthma, then the episode or recurrence must be recorded as it was caused by a new event/exposure in the workplace, and hence the incident
must be treated as a new case. If a physician or other licensed health care professional determines that a new case or a recurrence of an old case
exists, employers must follow their recommendation.

Reporting - Each employer, regardless of industry category or the number of its employees, must report all serious events, such as an accident
that results in one or more employee fatalities, work related hospitalisations, amputations, or loss of an eye. OSHA often investigates such acci-
dents to determine whether violations of standards contributed to the event.

All fatalities must be reported within 8 hours, and all hospitalisations, amputations, or eye loss must be reported within 24 hours. Reports must be
made to the nearest OSHA office, via the 24-hour hotline, or reported Online.

If a fatality occurs within 30 days of a work-related incident, or if an in-patient hospitalisation, amputation, or loss of an eye occurs within 24 hours of
the work-related incident, then OSHA must also be informed.

Employers do not have to report an event if it:

• Resulted from a motor vehicle accident on a public street or highway (except in a construction work zone).

• Occurred on a commercial or public transportation system, such as an aircraft or bus.

• Involved hospitalisation for diagnostic testing or observation only.

The reporting requirements to local occupational safety and health administrations may vary by state where individual state plans are in place,
however all states must have requirements that are at least as effective as OSHA’s. Employers must refer to the reporting requirements within their
state if a state plan exists.

Additionally, any injuries or illnesses will also require reporting to the employer’s applicable worker’s compensation insurer for all types of injury and
illness, and the appropriate state employees compensation commission. The form to be used would generally be called the employer ‘First Report
of Injury or Illness’. The method of reporting (forms or online) and the time limits for reporting vary between each individual insurance provider
and state workers compensation commission. As with OSHA the employer must notify the appropriate workers compensation commission of a
work-related fatality usually no later than the next business day following a fatality by the prescribed means (usually telephone or online). Readers
should pay close attention to the requirements of their state commission and insurance provider rules.

Maintaining and Posting Records - Records must be maintained at the workplace for at least five years following the end of the calendar year
that the records cover. Between February and April each year, employers must post a summary (OSHA 300-A) of the injuries and illnesses record-
ed during the previous year. Also, if requested, copies of the records must be provided to current and former employees, or their representatives.
Electronic submission is possible through the OSHA Injury Tracking Application (ITA). Employers must keep a separate OSHA 300 Log for each
establishment that is expected to be in operation for one year or longer.
Employers must involve their employees (or their representatives) in the recording and reporting of injuries and illnesses, including informing them
of the right to report (without discrimination), and how to report. Injuries and illnesses must be recorded for all employees, whether they are direct
labour, executive, hourly paid, salaried, part-time, seasonal, or migrant workers, and additionally if the employer supervises people on a daily basis
who are not on their payroll (e.g. temporary staff).

OSHA provides training on recordkeeping requirements through its national network of OSHA Training Institute (OTI) Education Centres, and spe-
cifically the OSHA #7845 Recordkeeping Rule Seminar (half-day course) which covers the OSHA requirements for maintaining and posting records
of occupational injuries and illnesses, and reporting specific cases to OSHA.

OSHA also has an Online Tutorial and Presentation Materials available.

Recording or reporting a work-related injury, illness, or fatality does not establish that the employer or employee was at fault, that an OSHA rule has
been violated, or that the employee is eligible for workers’ compensation or other benefits.

Workers’ compensation arrangements (methods of insurance etc.), the reporting of injuries and illnesses to OHSA and/or the workers compensation
provider, and the complexity of premiums/experience modification rate factors levied on certain workers compensation polices can be wide ranging
and complex. Care and specific advice should be obtained if an in-depth knowledge is required on this subject.

Furthermore, the documentation and recording requirements listed above are rigorously enforced by OSHA and can lead to citations for violations if
not followed. Although not specifically stated, employers would be advised to keep all records accurately completed and up to date.

Further guidance can be obtained from:

• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) website has more detail on the reporting requirements and record keeping require-
ments for injuries and illnesses at:

◦ Serious Injury Reporting.

◦ General information and Requirements on Record Keeping.

◦ Incident Investigation Requirements.

◦ Enforcement Guidance for Recordkeeping which details many of the citations available to OSHA compliance officers.

◦ Fact Sheets relating to Reporting and Recordkeeping.

• The US Department of Labor elaws Advisor website has information on OSHA Recordkeeping.

• The Bureau of Labor Statistics has definitions on Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities on its website.

Relevant Legislation
• Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.

• OSHA General Industry Regulations 29 CFR 1904.