The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s COVID vaccine mandate—which the Supreme Court recently blocked—has been controversial to say the least. For some time, however, there’s been a much broader consensus about OSHA’s authority to protect employees from work-related injuries and illnesses.
In order to comply with OSHA's recordkeeping requirements, certain employers must complete, post, and submit OSHA Form 300A. Here’s what you need to know.
OSHA Form 300A is a summary of injuries and illnesses from the previous year that are “work-related” and “recordable.” This means not all injuries and illnesses experienced in the workplace are considered “work-related”—a matter of context—or rise to the level of “recordable”—a matter of degree. We’ll come back to how OSHA defines those terms in a moment.
OSHA Reporting is a three-step process:
To comply, the Form 300A Summary—not the Log—must be posted in a highly visible area of each worksite from February 1 through April 30. Employers must also submit the Summary to OSHA by March 2, using their online Injury Tracking Application.
Since January 15, 2022, OSHA’s maximum penalty for noncompliance has been $14,502 per violation for serious, other-than-serious, and posting requirement violations. The maximum penalty for willful or repeated violations is $145,027 per violation.
These reporting requirements apply to employers with more than 10 employees in nonexempt, hazardous industries, such as agriculture, construction, and manufacturing.
Other employers and industries are referred to as “partially exempt” because there are still particular circumstances in which they must comply:
Partially exempt industries include retail, finance, and other low-hazard work environments. For a complete list of partially exempt industries by NAICS code, check out OSHA’s website. You can also look up your industry’s NAICS code on the US Census website.
Non-exempt employers should also note that they must complete and submit Form 300A Summary even if they have no injuries to report.
According to OSHA, an injury or illness is “work-related” if:
an event or exposure in the work environment caused or contributed to the condition or significantly aggravated a preexisting condition. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the workplace, unless an exception specifically applies.
Just because an employee experiences pain from an injury or symptoms from an illness in the workplace does not necessarily make it “work-related.”
According to OSHA, “recordable” work-related injuries and illnesses are those that result in:
Additionally, the following work-related incidents should be recorded:
that the employee has experienced a Standard Threshold Shift (STS) in hearing in one or both ears, averaged at 2000, 3000, and 4000 Hz
AND
the employee's total hearing level is 25 decibels (dB) or more above audiometric zero (also averaged at 2000, 3000, and 4000 Hz) in the same ear(s) as the STS.
If employers need help deciding if a case is “work-related” or “recordable,” OSHA encourages you to contact your regional office—or state office if you operate in a “State Plan” state.
For a step-by-step guide to filling out OSHA Forms 300, 300A, and 301, check out this article.
You can stay informed, educated, and up-to-date with HR compliance and other important topics using BerniePortal’s comprehensive resources: