Employer Responsibilities - Incident Reporting

Should an accident occur, OSHA stipulates that employers must report it. OSHA defines a recordable work-related injury or illness as a fatality or anything that results in the following symptoms or situations:

• Loss of consciousness
• Days away from work
• Restricted work
• Transfer to another job
• Work-related diagnosed cancer
• Work-related chronic irreversible diseases
• Work-related fractured or cracked bones or teeth
• Work-related fractured punctured eardrums
• Medical treatment beyond first aid

OSHA also requires specific action for certain injuries, as follows:

• Employers must report all inpatient hospitalizations, all amputations, and all losses of an eye within 24 hours through OSHA's toll-free number: 1-800-321-OSHA (6742).
• Employers must report all fatalities to the nearest OSHA office within 8 hours.

Note that there are also special record-keeping and reporting criteria for work-related cases involving needle sticks and sharps injuries, medical removal, hearing loss, and tuberculosis.

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