OSHA Defense
The OSHA 300A Electronic Deadline is Quickly Approaching Part 1
As of January 1, 2017, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has established a new rule that requires that employers submit their completed 2017 OSHA Form 300A electronically. The OSHA Form 300A is the annual summary form a business keeps for all work-related injuries and illnesses. Although this information is also documented at the jobsite, the deadline to submit this data electronically is rapidly approaching on July 1, 2018. If you are a construction employer and you want to challenge an OSHA penalty, please speak with one of our OSHA attorneys today.
Why Did OSHA Create This Rule?
As construction companies continue to adapt to a more digital process of performing business practices, OSHA has decided that a provision should be put in place that will improve the traditional process of reporting injuries and illnesses to an electronic system. Although employers are still required to keep records of injuries and safety incidents in real time, OSHA’s goal is to implement this digital reporting system to keep more accurate data. By closely evaluating all of this information, OSHA believes that digital access to these statistics will help their organization work more effectively on health and safety enforcement and compliance issues in the future.
Public Knowledge of OSHA Data
After employers submit this information no later than July 1, 2018, some of the statistics will be publicly posted on OSHA’s website at a later date. One of OSHA’s goals is to make businesses’ health and safety information public knowledge that can be accessed by any party that’s interested in learning more. From employees to prospective workers to business partners to potential clients, listing this data on OSHA’s website will allow anyone access to this important safety and health information.
OSHA believes that publishing this information will help motivate companies to ensure their workplace is focused on properly training workers and providing them with a safe workplace. OSHA also hopes that by making this data easier to access, it will also help eliminate retaliation in the workforce against employees that file a health or safety complaint.
For more information on this July 1, 2018, electronic deadline, please read section two. In the next section, we will focus on how to electronically submit your completed 300A form. If your company has more than 250 employees or you are a construction employer with more than 20 employees, this requirement applies to your business.
If you would like to speak with an OSHA attorney, please contact us today.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article is for general educational information only. This information does not constitute legal advice, is not intended to constitute legal advice, nor should it be relied upon as legal advice for your specific factual pattern or situation.