OSHA is proposing a new rule change to the injury and illness recordkeeping regulation. The proposed regulation will require companies to disclose additional data to OSHA, allowing OSHA to better target emerging hazards.

The current standard requires companies within designated industries with 20 or more employees to keep records of employee injury and illness and annually report the same to OSHA using Form 300A. 300A is a summary of information contained within Form 300 and Form 301, all related to employee injury and illness. It also requires any company with 250 or more employees, regardless of industry, to submit 300A data annually.

Below is a summary of the proposed rule:

  • OSHA will continue to require companies with 20 or more employees to submit 300A data annually.
  • OSHA will update its current classification of industries to match the 2017 North American Industry Classification System.
  • OSHA will eliminate the 300A data reporting requirement for companies with 250 or more employees that are not within the designated industries. They would still be required to make and keep the records.
  • Companies with 100 or more employees within the designated industries will be required to submit 300A data as well as 300 and 301 data to OSHA annually.

The most substantive change is to companies with 100 or more employees within the designated industries. 300 and 301 data contains sensitive information that could be used to identify an employee. In 2019, OSHA balanced the potential benefits from more information with the potential risk of employee privacy and decided against collecting 300 and 301 data. OSHA has since struggled with developing specific standards for hazards because the summary information from Form 300A does not provide enough details about the illness or injury. Now, with access to better redaction and analysis technology, OSHA believes collecting 300 and 301 data will help create specific standards to emerging hazards, with little risk to employee privacy.

The proposed rule will be published in the Federal Register on March 30, 2022. You can submit comments to be considered on the proposed rule until May 29, 2022 through the Federal eRulemaking Portal, Docket No. OSHA-2021-0006.