Workplace Safety
OSHA & Workplace Safety Tools
Free tools for OSHA injury recordability, severe-injury reporting deadlines, and electronic 300A submission.
Reviewed by theComplianceToolsLibrary Editorial Team · Last updated
Workplace-safety compliance under OSHA has three recurring jobs: deciding which injuries and illnesses must go on your OSHA 300 log (recordkeeping), reporting severe events to OSHA within tight deadlines, and — for many establishments — submitting that data electronically each year.
These rules are largely uniform federal standards, which makes them well suited to quick decision tools. Getting them wrong is costly: recordkeeping and reporting violations are among OSHA's most cited, and the reporting clock for a fatality or hospitalization runs in hours, not days.
Key concepts
- Recordable
- An injury or illness that must be entered on the OSHA 300 log — generally involving medical treatment beyond first aid, days away, restriction, or transfer.
- Reportable
- A severe event you must report directly to OSHA: a fatality (within 8 hours) or a hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss (within 24 hours).
- OSHA 300A
- The annual summary of recordable injuries and illnesses that many establishments must submit electronically.
- First aid
- A defined list of minor treatments that, by themselves, do not make a case recordable.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between recordable and reportable?
Recordable injuries go on your OSHA 300 log; reportable events (fatalities, hospitalizations, amputations, eye losses) must be reported directly to OSHA within 8 or 24 hours.
How fast must I report a fatality to OSHA?
Within 8 hours of learning of a work-related fatality. Hospitalizations, amputations, and eye losses must be reported within 24 hours.
Do I have to submit my 300A electronically?
Many establishments must, based on size and industry. The OSHA 300A Electronic Reporting Checker helps you determine whether the requirement applies.