What Is an OSHA Recordable Accident?

OSHA provides safety guidelines to protect employees.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a federal organization dedicated to improving worker safety. All employers within the U.S. are required to comply with OSHA standards and regulations. As part of OSHA's safety guidelines, all workers must maintain records of injuries, illnesses or fatalities in the workplace. These record-keeping and reporting requirements are covered by OSHA standard 1904.

Identification

Per OSHA Standard 1904.7, an employer must keep a record of any new injury or illness suffered on the job by an employee. According to this Standard, OSHA considers an injury or illness to be any incident that results in a fatality, loss of consciousness or medical treatment beyond basic first aid. An incident where the employee is diagnosed by a health professional, takes time off from work to recover or is restricted in his performance is also defined as a recordable injury or illness. This recording standard applies to companies with more than 10 employees.

Considerations

While not every injury or illness is recordable, there are certain situations in which an accident must always be recorded. Any time an employee suffered a cut or poke by a needle or potentially contaminated object, the incident must be recorded. This is also true of any hearing tests that show work-related hearing loss or deafness, or of any positive tuberculosis test result. Any incident where the worker experiences a musculoskeletal disorder must also be recorded. All of these instances require reporting, even when the incident does not meet the recording guidelines in Standard 1904.7.

Recording vs. Reporting

OSHA makes a clear distinction between events that should be recorded versus those that require an immediate report to OSHA. A recordable accident must be listed in the company's safety files, which should be kept on-site unless they are requested by OSHA. A reportable accident must be reported to OSHA in-person or by phone (at 1-800-321-OSHA) within eight hours of occurrence. Reportable accidents include any worker fatality or the in-patient hospitalization of three or more employees within an eight-hour period.

Function

OSHA recording standards help employers and employees. They can provide statistics and records of safety issues to help employers prevent accidents. Based on recording trends, the employer can correct any problem areas or safety hazards, then create more effective safety training programs. A record of employee illnesses and injuries may also keep workers more aware of potential safety risks. This helps to encourage adherence to company safety programs and use of personal protective equipment, such as hard hats and safety glasses.

Forms

Employees must use approved OSHA forms to meet incident recording requirements. When an employee suffers an injury or illness, the employer fills out Form 301, which includes details about the employee and the accident. Form 300 is used to maintain a list of all incidents recorded, while Form 301 allows employers to create an annual summary of all incidents. All of these forms must be held on file for five years and can be reviewed at anytime by OSHA compliance personnel. Forms 300 and 301 must be updated if any information changes, though annual summaries do not require such updates.

References

• OSHA: Recordkeeping Handbook
• OSHA: Recordkeeping and Reporting
• OSHA: Recordkeeping
• OSHA: Reporting Fatalities and Multiple Hospitalization Incidents

Resources

• OSHA Incident Recording Forms