Let’s talk more about OSHA log. This is relevant even if you have fewer than 10 employees – you still need to understand some OSHA language since almost all employers fall under the “General Duty Clause” of the regulations.
As you may recall from our earlier blog:
OSHA
- If you have more than 10 employees, you probably are responsible for preparing the OSHA 300A for posting from February to April. You should have been keeping the log up-to-date throughout the year for any work place injuries and illnesses.
- If you use the electronic version (OSHA LOG,) your incidents will automatically total for you on the posting page. You still need to supply:
- SIC or NAICS
- Annual average headcount
- TOTAL HOURS WORKED – do not forget your salary people (2,080 hours per year)
- Please note, a Company Executive should sign this.
GENERAL DUTY CLAUSE
All employers are responsible for maintaining a workplace free from harm or hazard that may cause injury or death. Makes sense, right? (Don’t forget, there was a day when that didn’t make sense to employers!)
WORKPLACE INJURY/ILLNESS
Per OSHA: “You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment, unless an exception in §1904.5(b)(2) specifically applies.” OSHA Injury Definition
Not everything that happens at work is an OSHA injury. We do recommend that you err on the side of caution however – if you’re NOT sure (bed bug bites for a traveling sales person,) you should report the claim to your insurance carrier and let them make the decision.
RECORDABLE
An incident is considered “recordable” if any of the following apply: restricted work, job transfer, receives more than first aid from a provider and a few other isolated cases as deemed by the healthcare provider (or OSHA.)
A “lost time incident” is considered any injury/illness that requires time off work.
Fatalities are also recorded specifically on the OSHA log.
This was just a very quick lesson in some key terms related to OSHA and Safety. Not sure if you are maintaining your logs correctly? HR Resolutions has a Safety Professional on staff. Please reach out to barry@hrresolutions.com for a complimentary review of your OSHA log and/or incident reporting forms.
