Overview and Objective:

This article will inform responsible personnel about OSHA recordkeeping requirements for calendar year 2003. The article will summarize changes that have occurred since January 2002 and will also present new reporting requirements effective January 2004.

OSHA Recordkeeping

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has a new set of rules for recordkeeping. OSHA's new recordkeeping rule, 29 CFR 1904¹, took effect on January 1, 2002. The goal of this new rule is to improve the quality of workplace injury and illness recordkeeping.

Forms

Agencies should be using the following forms:

OSHA Form 300, Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses,² classifies work-related injuries and illnesses and notes the extent and severity of each case. The Log is used to record the details of an incident (what happened and how it happened).³

OSHA Form 300A, Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses (see Footnote 2), summarizes the information on the OSHA 300 Log. The Summary is required to be posted in a visible location so that employees are aware of the injuries and illnesses occurring in the workplace. Posting is required from February 1 through April 30 (see Footnote 1).

The Injury and Illness Incident Report (OSHA Form 301) (see Footnote 2) allows agencies to provide more detailed information about the injured worker, the injury or illness, the workplace factors associated with the accident, and a brief description of how the injury or illness occurred (see Footnote 3). Many agencies use an equivalent internal reporting form recording more detailed information on each case. NOTE: To be considered an equivalent form, all information requested in the Injury and Illness Incident Report must be present on the substitute form (see Footnote 3).

It is important to remember, just because a case is listed on the 300 Log, the case is not necessarily eligible for workers' compensation or other insurance benefits. It also does not place blame on the employer or injured worker or indicate that an OSHA standard was violated (see Footnote 3).

Recording Criteria

All agencies are required to follow the OSHA recordkeeping requirements and maintain an OSHA 300 Log. Some agencies may be considered partially exempt (see Footnote 1) because they may classify as low-hazard industries. Low-hazard agencies do not have to keep records unless OSHA or the Bureau of Labor Statistics asks the agencies to participate in their annual surveys. However, these agencies must still report fatalities and catastrophic events (see Footnote 1). Caution: If you are required to complete an Executive Order 52 (99)⁴ annual analysis, you will still need to calculate your incident rate and keep track of your injuries.
The general recording criteria in 29 CFR 1904.7(b)(1)(i-vi) mandates that agencies must record any work-related injury or illness that meets following:

• Death


• Days away from work


• Restricted work or job transfer


• Medical treatment beyond first aid


• Loss of consciousness, or


• Diagnosis by a physician or other licensed health care professional as a significant injury or illness.

• Needlesticks or cuts from sharp objects that are contaminated with another person's blood or other potentially infectious material (29 CFR 1904.8)


• Medical removal of an employee from his/her job under the requirements of an OSHA health standard (29 CFR 1904.9)


• When an employee has tested positive on a tuberculosis skin test or diagnosed by physician after exposure to a known case of active tuberculosis (29 CFR 1904.11)


• When an employee's hearing test reveals:




1. That the employee has experienced a Standard Threshold Shift (STS) in hearing in one or both ears, and


2. The employee's total hearing level is 25 decibels or more above audiometric zero in the same ear(s) as the STS (29 CFR 1904.10).

• Whether the incident is a new case or a recurrence of an existing case.


• Establish whether the case was work-related.


• Whether the case is recordable.

When counting days away from work or days of restricted work activity, count calendar days (see Footnote 1). This assures the counts are more consistent and the actual length of an injury or illness clear.

Privacy Rights

In 29 CFR 1904.29(b)(6), OSHA indicates that there are several situations in which an employee's name does not have to be entered onto the OSHA 300 Log. In these situations, enter "privacy case" in the space normally used for the employee's name. However, the employer must maintain a separate confidential list of case numbers with the names associated with the privacy concerns. For more detailed information please refer to 20 CFR 1904.29(b)(6) - 29 CFR 1904.29(b)(9).

First Aid List

First aid is defined using a list of procedures⁵ that are all-inclusive. If a procedure is not on the list, it is not considered first aid for recordkeeping purposes.

Annual Summary Posting Requirements

At the end of each calendar year, an OSHA Form 300A, Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, must be completed and posted. In order to complete Form 300A, an agency's OSHA 300 Log must be reviewed to verify that the entries are complete and accurate. An agency executive must then verify the Summary. An agency executive is the highest-ranking agency official working at a location, e.g., Agency Commissioner, Agency Head, Facility Director, etc. Lastly, the Summary must be posted in a conspicuous place by February 1 of the year following the year covered by the form and kept posted until April 30 of that year (see Footnote 1).

Fatality or Catastrophic Reporting Criteria

Virginia Code § 40.1-51.1.D requires that agencies must notify the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI) with eight hours of any work-related incident that results in a fatality or the in-patient hospitalization of three or more employees.

Notification of these incidents must be done by either telephone or in person at a DOLI office.
When reporting an incident during normal working hours (8:15 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.), telephone or visit the closest regional or field office. The following numbers are valid during normal work hours:

Contact the State Police Duty Sergeant in Richmond, VA at 804-674-2026 if unable to reach DOLI.⁶

Upcoming Changes for 2004

On October 2, 2003, in an OSHA Trade News Release⁷, OSHA announced the revision of the OSHA Form 300, Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses.⁸ The forms, which are required for agency use in recording injuries and illnesses, have changed in several important ways for 2004. The most significant change is the addition of an occupational hearing loss column to OSHA's Form 300. Other changes indicated in the OSHA Trade News were:

• "Days away from work" column now comes before the "days on job transfer or restriction"


• More clear formulas for calculating incidence rates


• New recording criteria for occupational hearing loss in the "Overview" section


• More prominent column heading "Classify the Case" to make it clear that employers should mark only one selection among the four columns offered.

Footnotes

1. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "Recording and
   Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illness (Regulatory Text), " Viewed October 10, 2003 at
   http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owastand.display_standard_group?p_toc_level=1&p_part_number=1904.
2. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "Recordkeeping
   Forms (CY 2002 and CY 2003), Excel Forms," Viewed October 8, 2003 at
   http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/OSHArecordkeepingforms.xls.
3. U.S Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "Forms for
   Recording Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses," Viewed October 8,2003 at
   http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/OSHArecordkeepingforms.pdf.
4. Virginia Department of Planning and Budget. "Executive Orders," Viewed October 8, 2003
   at http://www.dpb.state.va.us/EO/eo52(99).htm.
5. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "Recordkeeping, First Aid List," Viewed October 8, 2003 at
   http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/firstaid_list.pdf.
6. Virginia Department of Labor and Industry. "Fatality/ Catastrophic Notifications," Viewed
   October 8, 2003 at http://www.doli.state.va.us/whatwedo/enforcement/report_fatality.html.
7. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "OSHA Trade
   News Release, Pencils Ready? New OSHA Form For Recordkeeping Work-related Injuries and Illnesses Now Available on Agency's Website," Viewed October 8, 2003 at
   http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=NEWS_RELEASES&p_id=10478.
8. U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "Recordkeeping
   Forms (CY 2004 and beyond), Excel Forms," Viewed October 8, 2003 at
   http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/new-osha300form1-1-04.xls.