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OSHA Proposes Dramatic Changes to the Reporting of Workplace Injuries

Proposed changes to workplace injury reporting will significantly expand the duties of employers and possibly make companies targets of attorneys and others seeking to capitalize on the information. The United States Department of Labor, Occupational Safety & Health Administration ("OSHA") has proposed to expand the availability of workplace injury data by creating an online database, amending the recordkeeping regulations to require companies with 20 to 250 employees, in certain industries with high rates of injury and illness, to report job-related injuries and illness on a yearly basis. Further, employers with 250 or more employees, regardless of industry, would have to report all injuries on a quarterly basis. Employers affected by the proposed rule would be required to electronically submit to OSHA the name of an injured employee, job title, date of injury, and the location where the injury occurred, description of the injury, and number of days away from work or restricted duty.

OSHA argues that they are not asking employers to collect more information, but just to submit information on incidents already subject to existing reporting requirements. David Michaels, Assistant Labor Secretary says, "our proposed requirement will enable the public, researchers, and OSHA to work together to prevent injury and illness more effectively." Michaels equates the proposed bill to letter grades often seen at restaurants which encourage owners to change their behavior. OSHA theorizes that making the information of injuries more widely available will force employers to take ownership of their injury rates and aid in self-policing of safety issues.

Despite OSHA's arguments, numerous business advocacy groups, such as the National Association of Manufacturers and US Chamber of Commerce have already criticized the proposed rule. Employers and their advocates are worried how such data may be misinterpreted. Marc Freedman, executive director of labor law policy at the US Chamber of Commerce articulated this fear, "just because you have an injury, it does not mean there was employer fault." Another concern is that the data will be used by unions or personal injury attorneys to target particular companies. Even, safety professionals and researchers have voiced uneasiness that the rule will put pressure on companies to under report in order to lower their published injury numbers.

OSHA is holding a public hearing on the proposed rule in early January 2014. The rule is anticipated to be finalized in February 2014.

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