What’s New with OSHA’s Proposed Recordkeeping Changes?

Recordkeeping is a critical element in any workplace, especially for those operating in highly hazardous industries. For this reason, agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) require companies to disclose their occupational injury and illnesses reports.

Given these requirements, how are you tracking the current injuries or illnesses in your workplace? How much time does it take you to sift through files and gather all the required details to populate the information needed for OSHA compliance? Do you wish you could reduce touchpoints in that process? Are you submitting records electronically today, or might you have to in the future? 

Proposed Changes With the New OSHA Recordkeeping Rule 

Recently, OSHA has proposed to amend its occupational injury and illness recordkeeping regulation under 29 CFR 1904. This amendment will require certain employers (listed below in Appendices A and B) to electronically submit injury and illness information that employers are already required to keep to OSHA. 

Specifically, according to OSHA’s proposed amendments, establishments with 100 or more employees in certain designated industries will have to electronically submit information from their OSHA Forms (300, 301, and 300A) to OSHA once a year. The list of industries affected by this proposed change is found on Appendix B.

Meanwhile, establishments with 20 or more employees in certain industries (listed in Appendix A below) would keep being required to electronically submit information from their OSHA Form 300A annual summary to OSHA once a year. 

Which of These Changes will Affect Companies the Most? 

Perhaps, the highlights of OSHA’s amendments are these two changes. 

First, the proposed rule would remove the current requirement for establishments with 250 or more employees, not in a designated industry, to electronically submit information from their Form 300A to OSHA on an annual basis. Instead, as mentioned earlier, this revision will expand its scope to certain designated establishments with 100 or more employees.

Aside from those changes, OSHA also proposes to update the classification system (NAICS 2012 to 2017 List) used to determine the list of industries covered by the electronic submission requirement.

What’s Next in OSHA Report Submissions?

Apart from electronic submissions, here is another game-change that OSHA has put forward. 

OSHA intends to publish the data from the proposed annual electronic submission requirement on a public website without breaching an individual’s privacy. Such data will only be posted after identifying and removing information associated directly with individuals, such as their names and contact information. It will also require establishments to include their company name when making electronic submissions to OSHA.

How Will These Impact Organizations?

If these proposed changes are accepted as is, this will add additional submission requirements for those affected industries. This will require more time and attention to the submission process, recordkeeping accuracy, and overall data management. 

The second impact would be for organizations to have their name on display for all to see on their OSHA records. The proposed rule would give organizations a very visible competitive advantage when evaluating suppliers and contractors.  

Why It’s Important for You to be Informed

Aside from promoting a safe workplace, informing yourself of these modifications in OSHA recordkeeping requirements helps your organization abide by its rules more effectively. After all, OSHA violations are no joke. Grave and repeated offenses can result in huge fines depending on the violations committed. 

For instance, with OSHA citations increased in January 2022, the maximum penalties for serious and other-than-serious violations has increased from $13,653 per violation to $14,502 per violation. Meanwhile,  willful or repeated violators can face penalties worth  $145,027 per violation, which has risen from the previous $136,532 per violation. 

This situation shows the financial impact that inaccurate recordkeeping can have on an organization, its bottom line, and its reputation. 

Keeping Up with the OSHA Recordkeeping Requirements 

So how can you stay on top of all these changes? Here are five effective ways to ensure compliance with the OSHA recordkeeping rule amidst these changes:

1. Ensure that your recordkeeping is up to date through good documentation practices.
2. Digitize your processes to keep standardization and visibility using tools like SafetyCulture (formerly iAuditor).
3. Create automated workflows to eliminate and ease touch points in your processes.
4. Check out One-Pager from SafetyCulture on Incident Management.
5. Subscribe to safety-related blogs, Linkedin articles and influencers such as SafetyCulture.

Appendix A: Industries with 20 or more employees affected by the proposed change

The proposed revisions to Appendix A are as follows:

2017 NAICS code	2017 NAICS title
11	Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting.
22	Utilities.
23	Construction.
31-33	Manufacturing.
42	Wholesale trade.
4413	Automotive Parts, Accessories, and Tire Stores.
4421	Furniture Stores.
4422	Home Furnishings Stores.
4441	Building Material and Supplies Dealers.
4442	Lawn and Garden Equipment and Supplies Stores.
4451	Grocery Stores.
4452	Specialty Food Stores.
4522	Department Stores.
4523	General Merchandise Stores, including Warehouse Clubs and Supercenters.
4533	Used Merchandise Stores.
4542	Vending Machine Operators.
4543	Direct Selling Establishments.
4811	Scheduled Air Transportation.
4841	General Freight Trucking.
4842	Specialized Freight Trucking.
4851	Urban Transit Systems.
4852	Interurban and Rural Bus Transportation.
4853	Taxi and Limousine Service.
4854	School and Employee Bus Transportation.
4855	Charter Bus Industry.
4859	Other Transit and Ground Passenger Transportation.
4871	Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation, Land.
4881	Support Activities for Air Transportation.
4882	Support Activities for Rail Transportation.
4883	Support Activities for Water Transportation.
4884	Support Activities for Road Transportation.
4889	Other Support Activities for Transportation.
4911	Postal Service.
4921	Couriers and Express Delivery Services.
4922	Local Messengers and Local Delivery.
4931	Warehousing and Storage.
5152	Cable and Other Subscription Programming.
5311	Lessors of Real Estate.
5321	Automotive Equipment Rental and Leasing.
5322	Consumer Goods Rental.
5323	General Rental Centers.
5617	Services to Buildings and Dwellings.
5621	Waste Collection.
5622	Waste Treatment and Disposal.
5629	Remediation and Other Waste Management Services.
6219	Other Ambulatory Health Care Services.
6221	General Medical and Surgical Hospitals.
6222	Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Hospitals.
6223	Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals.
6231	Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities).
6232	Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse Facilities.
6233	Continuing Care Retirement Communities and Assisted Living Facilities for the Elderly.
6239	Other Residential Care Facilities.
6242	Community Food and Housing, and Emergency and Other Relief Services.
6243	Vocational Rehabilitation Services.
7111	Performing Arts Companies.
7112	Spectator Sports.
7121	Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions.
7131	Amusement Parks and Arcades.
7132	Gambling Industries.
7211	Traveler Accommodation.
7212	RV (Recreational Vehicle) Parks and Recreational Camps.
7223	Special Food Services.
8113	Commercial and Industrial Machinery and Equipment (except Automotive and Electronic) Repair and Maintenance.
8123	Drycleaning and Laundry Services.

Appendix B: Industries with 100 or more employees affected by the proposed change

The designated industries, which would be published as appendix B to subpart E of part 1904, are proposed to be as follows:

2017 NAICS code	2017 NAICS title
1111	Oilseed and grain farming.
1112	Vegetable and melon farming.
1113	Fruit and tree nut farming.
1114	Greenhouse, nursery, and floriculture production.
1119	Other crop farming.
1121	Cattle ranching and farming.
1122	Hog and pig farming.
1123	Poultry and egg production.
1129	Other animal production.
1141	Fishing.
1151	Support activities for crop production.
1152	Support activities for animal production.
1153	Support activities for forestry.
2213	Water, sewage and other systems.
2381	Foundation, structure, and building exterior contractors.
3111	Animal food manufacturing.
3113	Sugar and confectionery product manufacturing.
3114	Fruit and vegetable preserving and specialty food manufacturing.
3115	Dairy product manufacturing.
3116	Animal slaughtering and processing.
3117	Seafood product preparation and packaging.
3118	Bakeries and tortilla manufacturing.
3119	Other food manufacturing.
3121	Beverage manufacturing.
3161	Leather and hide tanning and finishing.
3162	Footwear manufacturing.
3211	Sawmills and wood preservation.
3212	Veneer, plywood, and engineered wood product manufacturing.
3219	Other wood product manufacturing.
3261	Plastics product manufacturing.
3262	Rubber product manufacturing.
3271	Clay product and refractory manufacturing.
3272	Glass and glass product manufacturing.
3273	Cement and concrete product manufacturing.
3279	Other nonmetallic mineral product manufacturing.
3312	Steel product manufacturing from purchased steel.
3314	Nonferrous metal production and processing.
3315	Foundries.
3321	Forging and stamping.
3323	Architectural and structural metals manufacturing.
3324	Boiler, tank, and shipping container manufacturing.
3325	Hardware manufacturing.
3326	Spring and wire product manufacturing.
3327	Machine shops; turned product; and screw, nut, and bolt manufacturing.
3328	Coating, engraving, heat treating, and allied activities.
3331	Agriculture, construction, and mining machinery manufacturing.
3335	Metalworking machinery manufacturing.
3361	Motor vehicle manufacturing.
3362	Motor vehicle body and trailer manufacturing.
3363	Motor vehicle parts manufacturing.
3366	Ship and boat building.
3371	Household and institutional furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing.
3372	Office furniture manufacturing.
4231	Motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies merchant wholesalers.
4233	Lumber and other construction materials merchant wholesalers.
4235	Metal and mineral merchant wholesalers.
4244	Grocery and related product merchant wholesalers.
4248	Beer, wine, and distilled alcoholic beverage merchant wholesalers.
4413	Automotive parts, accessories, and tire stores.
4422	Home furnishings stores.
4441	Building material and supplies dealers.
4442	Lawn and garden equipment and supplies stores.
4451	Grocery stores.
4522	Department stores.
4523	General merchandise stores, including warehouse clubs and supercenters.
4533	Used merchandise stores.
4543	Direct selling establishments.
4811	Scheduled air transportation.
4841	General freight trucking.
4842	Specialized freight trucking.
4851	Urban transit systems.
4852	Interurban and rural bus transportation.
4854	School and employee bus transportation.
4859	Other transit and ground passenger transportation.
4871	Scenic and sightseeing transportation, land.
4881	Support activities for air transportation.
4883	Support activities for water transportation.
4911	Postal Service.
4921	Couriers and express delivery services.
4931	Warehousing and storage.
5322	Consumer goods rental.
5621	Waste collection.
5622	Waste treatment and disposal.
6219	Other ambulatory health care services.
6221	General medical and surgical hospitals.
6222	Psychiatric and substance abuse hospitals.
6223	Specialty hospitals.
6231	Nursing care facilities.
6232	Residential intellectual and developmental disability, mental health, and substance abuse facilities.
6233	Continuing care retirement communities and assisted living facilities for the elderly.
6239	Other residential care facilities.
6243	Vocational rehabilitation services.
7111	Performing arts companies.
7112	Spectator sports.
7131	Amusement parks and arcades.
7211	Traveler accommodation.
7212	RV parks and recreational camps.
7223	Special food services.
6239	Other residential care facilities.
6243	Vocational rehabilitation services.
7111	Performing arts companies.
7112	Spectator sports.
7131	Amusement parks and arcades.
7211	Traveler accommodation.
7212	RV parks and recreational camps.
7223	Special food services.

Important Notice
The information contained in this article is general in nature and you should consider whether the information is appropriate to your specific needs. Legal and other matters referred to in this article are based on our interpretation of laws existing at the time and should not be relied on in place of professional advice. We are not responsible for the content of any site owned by a third party that may be linked to this article. SafetyCulture disclaims all liability (except for any liability which by law cannot be excluded) for any error, inaccuracy, or omission from the information contained in this article, any site linked to this article, and any loss or damage suffered by any person directly or indirectly through relying on this information.