Injury and illness recordkeeping

In 2007, to add value for clients of her insurance brokerage, Lauren Gizzi began her delve into the world of OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping – including multiple readings of the agency’s handbook on the subject.

It’s a topic “near and dear to my heart,” and one that’s often misunderstood, said Gizzi, vice president of safety at Schaumburg, IL-based Assurance – a Marsh & McLennan Agency company.

It also can prove complex and confusing for many employers. For instance, what if an employee is injured while slipping on ice in the company parking lot before beginning the workday? Is the injury recordable? What if the parking lot is shared with other businesses?

Or, what if an employee is injured in one calendar year and remains out of work during the early part of the next year? Under which year would the employer record the employee’s days away from work?

These are a few of the scenarios and subsequent questions that can arise when people seek to complete OSHA’s injury and illness recordkeeping forms correctly and accurately. Some employers, however, can struggle even with the basics.

Who needs to record injuries and illnesses?

One basic concept that creates confusion is if and when employers need to keep OSHA logs, said Anthony Tilton, partner at Coney Construction Law.

Under 1904.1 of its Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illness Standard, OSHA provides partial exemptions for establishments that have 10 or fewer employees for a full calendar year.

If an organization hires an 11th employee even for a day, it has to maintain OSHA logs for that year. The total number of employees applies to the entire organization, not just individual establishments within an organization. Further, the 11th employee doesn’t have to be full-time; if he or she is a part-time, contract or a temporary employee, the employer must log injuries and illnesses.

“The way I always try to explain it is peak employment,” Tilton said. “What was your peak employment last calendar year? Eight people? That’s the most you ever had? Great. You’re exempt.” But if a small-business employer says, “‘Well, no, wait a minute. We did hire four people, but it was only for a weekend.’ Nope. Peak employment [was 12]; you’ve got to keep records.”

Under 1904.2, OSHA provides partial exemptions for individual establishments based on North American Industry Classification System codes. A list of those partially exempt industries is available on OSHA’s website. Unsure of your NAICS code? Contact your nearest OSHA or State Plan office, or go to naics.com/search/ and search by keyword.

No matter an establishment’s size or industry, OSHA requires employers to report worker fatalities, inpatient hospitalizations, amputations or losses of an eye – also known as reportable injuries – as outlined under 1904.39.

“People aren’t always familiar with that,” said Sarah Rothrock, project coordinator and safety specialist at Lancaster Safety Consulting in Wexford, PA. “They think, ‘If I don’t have to record [injuries or illnesses on an OSHA log], then I don’t have to report.’ According to the standard, all employers under OSHA jurisdiction must inform OSHA of any reportable incidents, even employers who are exempt from routinely maintaining OSHA recordkeeping forms.”

Also, under 1904.42, the Bureau of Labor Statistics can request injury and illness records from partially exempt employers, typically for its Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses. Gizzi said BLS usually selects employers at random and asks them to submit information on a year or two.

OSHA, under 1904.41, can ask employers – including partially exempt ones – to send injury and illness information upon request.

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