OSHA’s revised recordkeeping rule to go into effect Jan. 1

Washington — OSHA has finalized its revised rule on submitting annual injury and illness data.

Starting on Jan. 1, the agency will require establishments with 100 or more employees in certain high-hazard industries to submit data from Forms 300 and 301 – in addition to Form 300A – by March 2 each year.

Form 300 is a log of work-related injuries and illnesses, while Form 301 features incident reports that correspond to each entry on Form 300. 

Establishments in high-hazard industries with 20 to 249 employees in a calendar year are still required to submit Form 300A, a summary of work-related injuries and illnesses. Also required to submit annual data are establishments with 250-plus employees “in industries that must routinely keep OSHA injury and illness records.”

The agency adds that it’s “updating the [North American Industry Classification System] codes used in appendix A, which designates the industries required to submit their Form 300A data, and is adding appendix B, which designates the industries required to submit Form 300 and Form 301 data.”

Establishments must also include their legal company name when submitting data each year. 

“Congress intended for the Occupational Safety and Health Act (of 1970) to include reporting procedures that would provide the agency and the public with an understanding of the safety and health problems workers face, and this rule is a big step in finally realizing that objective,” OSHA administrator Doug Parker said in a press release. “OSHA will use these data to intervene through strategic outreach and enforcement to reduce worker injuries and illnesses in high-hazard industries. 

“The safety and health community will benefit from the insights this information will provide at the industry level, while workers and employers will be able to make more informed decisions about their workplace’s safety and health.”

The White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs reviewed the final rule from April 7 to July 11. OSHA issued its proposed rule on the changes in March 2022.