OSHA’s New Injury and Illness Reporting Requirements

Starting in January 2025, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will implement stricter injury and illness reporting requirements for certain establishments. These changes aim to enhance workplace safety by increasing transparency and improving data analysis for high-hazard industries.

Here’s what you need to know about these new reporting requirements, who they affect, and how they will benefit workplace safety.

What Are OSHA’s New Requirements?

Under the updated rule, establishments with 100 or more employees in designated high-hazard industries must electronically submit detailed injury and illness data annually. This includes:

• • Case-specific information from OSHA Form 300 Log and Form 301 Incident Report (29 CFR 1904.41) for the previous calendar year.
  • Details such as the date, location, and severity of injuries or illnesses.
  • Information about the injured worker and the circumstances of the injury or illness.

The deadline to submit this data through OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application (ITA) is March 2, 2025.

Who Must Comply?

These requirements apply to establishments that:

• • Had a peak employment of 100 or more employees in the previous calendar year.
  • Operate in designated high-hazard industries listed in Appendix B to Subpart E of 29 CFR Part 1904.

Both federally regulated establishments and those covered by OSHA-approved state workplace safety programs are subject to these rules.

OSHA estimates that approximately 50,000 establishments will need to comply, covering about 750,000 injury and illness cases annually. While less than 1% of establishments nationwide will be affected, the data from these high-hazard industries will represent nearly 30% of all reported recordable injuries and illnesses.

The average cost of compliance for affected establishments is estimated at $136 per year.

What Are the Benefits of the New Reporting Rule?

OSHA’s enhanced reporting requirements aim to improve workplace safety by:

1. Targeting Hazards:
   • • The data will help OSHA identify specific hazards in high-risk establishments and industries.
     • OSHA can better engage with these establishments through enforcement or outreach activities to mitigate risks.
2. Analyzing Injury Trends:
   • • Increased data collection will enable more accurate analysis of injury trends across industries, occupations, and processes.
     • Detailed statistics will support the development of targeted safety initiatives.
3. Enhancing Transparency:
   • • Publishing injury and illness data from Forms 300 and 301 will provide more robust insights for researchers, policymakers, and employers, helping improve overall worker safety and health.

How to Prepare for OSHA’s New Reporting Requirements

To ensure compliance, employers in high-hazard industries should:

• • Verify if their establishment meets the employee threshold and industry designation.
  • Familiarize themselves with OSHA Forms 300 and 301 and the Injury Tracking Application (ITA) submission process.
  • Develop internal procedures to gather, review, and submit data by the March 2, 2025 deadline.

For additional details, visit OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application page.

To determine whether your establishment(s) is required to report this data, click here.

Walden’s Expertise in OSHA Compliance

Navigating OSHA’s complex regulations can be challenging, but Walden’s Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) specialists are here to help. Our team has extensive experience with OSHA compliance and can provide the guidance your facility needs to meet these new reporting requirements.

Contact us at 516-789-2972 to speak with an experienced consultant and ensure your business is fully compliant by 2025.