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What Constitutes an OSHA Reportable Accident?

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) was put into place by the Department of Labor to protect employees in the workplace. All places of employment are required to meet specific guidelines and report work-related injuries and deaths to OSHA for investigation, but not all incidents that take place within the workplace are considered OSHA reportable.

  1. Hospitalization

    • Several employees at the same business may experience an illness or similar injuries because of a chemical spill, toxic gas or other problem. When at least three employees from the same company are affected by the same issue and are admitted to the hospital for treatment, the company is required to report the incident to OSHA. However, if less than three people are admitted to the hospital because of an incident, the company must only record it in its files to show OSHA if an investigation takes place.

    Death

    • If any employee dies because of an accident that happened on the job, whether it's immediate or occurs later as a direct result of the accident, the employer must report the incident to OSHA within eight hours of the death. Also, if the employee dies as the result of an illness that was acquired because of work conditions, the death must be reported to OSHA. These reports must be given verbally over the phone or in person at an OSHA office.

    Injuries

    • For an injury to be reportable to OSHA, it must be considered major enough that it affects the employee's ability to do his job. Any loss of consciousness automatically requires reporting to OSHA. The employee must also work directly for the company and be present because he's working. If independent contractors or employees present at the worksite for personal reasons are injured, they're considered customer-related and thus aren't OSHA reportable.

    Reporting Versus Recording

    • OSHA requires companies to keep records of both reportable and recordable incidents that happen within the company. More serious injuries, hospitalization of several employees at once and deaths related to the job all must be reported to OSHA directly as soon as possible, typically within eight hours. Minor injuries, such as scrapes, cuts, bruises and burns that require extensive medical care should be recorded within a company's records, but don't need to be submitted to OSHA unless they're requested during an investigation.

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