On March 31st, 2023, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL’s) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released its 2022 injury and illness data based on reports from more than 300,000 establishments. Reports are collected from specific employers who must submit Form 300A data through the online Injury Tracking Application (ITA). The window to submit Form 300A for the previous year was from January 2 to March 2nd, 2023. OSHA will use the 2022 injury and illness data to better understand safety and health in multiple industries and to identify enforcement priorities. Last month, OSHA discussed its 2023 enforcement priorities at an American Bar Association conference on occupational safety.
Form 300A Reporting Requirements
OSHA requires employers with 250 or more employees to submit an annual Form 300A electronically through the ITA. In brief, Form 300A includes a summary of work-related injuries and illnesses during the previous calendar year. Covered employers must provide the required injury and illness data once a year.
Meanwhile, employers with between 20 and 249 employees in specific industries must also submit an annual Form 300A electronically. Employers under this designation belong to specific industries with historically high rates of occupational injuries and illnesses. These industries include, but are not limited to:
- agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting;
- utilities;
- scheduled air transportation;
- urban transit systems; and
- general medical and surgical hospitals.
2022 Injury and Illness Data
This year, OSHA collected Form 300A 2022 injury and illness data from 316,537 establishments. The report includes data on workplace injuries, deaths, hearing loss, poisonings, and other illnesses. Note that recording or reporting a work-related illness, injury, or fatality does not necessarily mean an employer or employee was at fault or that they violated an OSHA standard. Statistics listed in the report included the following:
- 1,251,961 work-related injuries,
- 261,913 illnesses involving respiratory conditions,
- 10,862 instances of hearing loss, and
- 853 deaths.
Over the last year, OSHA increased its outreach through websites, email, and social media to help employers understand their obligation to submit 2022 injury and illness data. Subsequently, in the coming year, OSHA will work to identify employers that failed to submit their 2022 Form 300A data.
The Value of OSHA Recordkeeping
Public access to injury and illness data on specific industries and companies lets employers and workers better understand workplace safety. This, in turn, allows them to make informed decisions. According to Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker, “Recordkeeping is a valuable tool that provides a road map to where and why injuries and illnesses occur and where improvements are needed.” Shared data within an industry can help employers compare operations and identify and mitigate workplace safety hazards. Finally, access to 2022 injury and illness data can help gauge how effective safety and health systems in the workplace were in the last year.