The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has extended the deadline for electronic submissions of injury and illness records in accordance with its electronic recordkeeping rule. Originally, the compliance date was set for December 1, 2017 but OSHA has granted employers a two-week extension. The information must now be submitted by December 15, 2017.
Under the new “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses” rule, employers in most states with 250 or more employees are now required to submit an Injury Tracking Application (ITA) electronically. Employers with 20-249 employees in certain industries with high rates of workplace injury and illness (such as construction, manufacturing and health care) are also required to submit ITAs. These employers are already required to keep track of injury and illness information under OSHA regulations, however now they must submit their data through the ITA.
This requirement became effective on January 1, 2017 and the requirements will be gradually introduced over the next two years. The three forms that employers must complete are Form 301, Form 300 and Form 300A. Form 301 is a detailed information report explaining workers’ injuries, the circumstances of the workplace accident and contact information for the treating health care professional. Form 300 is a log of workplace injuries and illnesses and their severity. Form 330A provides the number of incidents for particular locations.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that there are up to 4.5 million nonfatal workplace injuries and 6,000 workplace fatalities each year. To reduce these workplace accidents, OSHA has implemented rules such as the ITA submission requirement. Employers that do not comply with the electronic recordkeeping rule may face fines of up to $10,000 as well as other consequences. OSHA has extended the compliance deadline to give employers more time to become familiar with the new electronic system.
Source: Facility Executive, OSHA Extends Compliance Date for Workplace Injury, Illness Reports, November 29, 2017