OSHA’s Expanded Recordkeeping Rule Takes Effect

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By Hilda Loury 

Hilda Loury

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s new rule expanding the agency’s recordkeeping requirements took effect on January 1, 2024. Previous rules required covered employers with 250 or more employees and employers with 20 to 249 employees in designated industries to electronically submit information from their Form 300A. OSHA’s new rule expands these requirements to include additional employers and requires some employers to provide additional information.

Here are the key points from the new rule:

1. Establishments with 20–249 employees in designated industries are required to electronically submit information from their Form 300A to OSHA annually. OSHA’s current list of industries subject to this requirement is available HERE.
2. Establishments with 100 or more employees that are in designated high-risk industries are now required to electronically submit additional data from Forms 300 and 301 to OSHA annually. OSHA’s newly-expanded list of high-risk industries is available HERE.
3. Establishments with 250 or more employees that must routinely keep records are still required to electronically submit information from their Form 300A to OSHA annually.
4. Establishments must include their company name when submitting electronic information to OSHA.
5. OSHA will not collect employee names or addresses, names of health care professionals, or names and addresses of off-site treatment facilities.
6. OSHA will publicly post establishment- and case-specific injury and illness data to its FOIA library with personal information redacted.

Employers should closely monitor their specific employee count throughout the year to ensure compliance with these new requirements.  Covered employers should be prepared to submit their 300A summaries from February 1, 2024 through April 30, 2024 and to submit their 300, 300A, and/or 301 incident reports by March 2, 2024.

Employers must ensure that their OSHA recordkeeping forms are sufficient and accurate as it may be difficult to revise information after submission. Accuracy is imperative as this information will be available to the public, including labor unions and third parties. Furthermore, OSHA reviews submissions and may issue citations and monetary penalties for errors. Employers may also consider conducting internal audits to identify recordkeeping problems or injury trends that could draw OSHA’s attention as its unprecedented access to workplace safety data will likely result in increased scrutiny and enforcement. Employers will be best served by identifying and correcting problems proactively.

Please contact a Phillips Murrah labor and employment attorney for assistance in evaluating the impact of OSHA’s new recordkeeping rules on your business. We will continue to post updates on new guidance and rules from the DOL and other federal agencies on our website and social media channels.

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