All employers maintaining the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) 
300 Logs for workplace injuries and illnesses pursuant to OSHA’s record keeping standard must post their 2010 annual summary by February 1, 2011.
The Occupational Safety & Health Act (OSHA) requires employers with eleven or more employers, who do not fall within the exception for certain “low hazard industries,” to maintain a log and summary of all “recordable occupational injuries and illness” and enter each “recordable” injury and illness on its OSHA 300 Form – The Log and Summary of Occupational Injuries & Illnesses. Additionally, covered employers must post an annual summary of occupational injuries and illnesses on the OSHA Form 300 from February 1 to March 1 every year at each establishment in the place or places where the notices to employees are generally posted.
This posting requirement applies even if there were no injuries or illnesses during the year; in such a case, zeros must be entered in the spaces for totals and the form posted. According to OSHA’s Field Operations Manual, an employer who fails to post the summary portion of the OSHA 300 Form during the month of February, is subject to a proposed penalty of $1,000.
Since all employers are subject to regulations under OSHA, it is imperative that Human Resources understands the requirements in this area. For organizations that do not have a separate professional responsible for OSHA, resources are available through our friends to help you in this area.
RELATED:
Labor Postings
Related Articles
- OSHA Temporarily Withdraws Proposed Column for MSDs in OSHA 300 Logs (ehssafetynews.wordpress.com)
- OSHA to Roll Out 5 New Rules & Ergonomic Won’t Be One of Them (ehssafetynews.wordpress.com)
- How to Handle an OSHA Inspection – “What Should I Expect?” (ehssafetynews.wordpress.com)
what documents should be maintained for safety audits
That’s a great question. Depending on the company’s industry and such, there are different OSHA requirements and the records to maintain for audit purposes can range anywhere from the standard OSHA300 reports to notes of safety committee meetings, documentation of certifications and much more. OSHA maintains a great site (and it’s free) with a lot of information. http://www.osha.gov/ Or, if you have something specific you need help with setting up and you don’t find it on OSHA’s site, let us know and we can put you in touch with safety consultants who could help.