OSHA Expands Must Report Injury List

Effective Jan. 1, 2015, a revised Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) rule expands the list of severe work-related injuries that all covered employers must report to OSHA.

The revised rule retains the current requirement to report all work-related fatalities within eight hours and adds the requirement to report to OSHA all work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and loss of an eye within 24 hours.

Fatalities that occur within 30 days of a work-related incident must be reported to OSHA. In-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye must be reported to OSHA only if they occur within 24 hours of a work-related incident.

Businesses located in states under federal OSHA jurisdiction must begin to comply with the new requirements on Jan. 1. Businesses located in states that operate their own safety and health programs should ask their respective state plans for the implementation date of the new requirements.

According to OSHA, the rule will allow businesses to focus efforts more effectively to prevent fatalities and serious work-related injuries and illnesses. The final rule also will improve employers’, employees’, researchers’ and the public’s access to information about workplace safety and health, and increase their ability to identify and abate serious hazards.

Employers can report work-related injuries to OSHA by calling the agency’s free, confidential hotline at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742), by calling the closest area office during normal business hours, or by using the new online form that will soon be available.

This information has been adapted from OSHA’s website. Full details of the changes are published on OSHA’s website. S