Employers in California are required to report certain serious injuries that happen in their workplaces to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. If they fail to report a recordable injury, the employers may face stiff penalties. Employers need to understand which types of injuries are recordable and which do not have to be reported to OSHA.
According to OSHA, serious injuries must be reported to the agency using OSHA Form 300. However, some employers are unclear about which types of injuries are considered to be serious and recordable and which are not. This has led to confusion among employers. Failing to report recordable injuries to OSHA can result in heavy fines. Some employers err on the side of caution and report injuries that are not recordable while others fail to report serious injuries that qualify.
Under OSHA’s guidelines, employers must report work-related injuries that result in days lost from work. They must also report injuries that lead to work restrictions, job transfers and losses of consciousness. All injuries that require medical care beyond basic first aid must be reported to OSHA and qualify as recordable injuries.
OSHA’s reporting requirements are meant to help the agency identify workplaces where injuries frequently occur so that preventative measures can be taken. Workers who suffer serious injuries while they are working should promptly report what happened to their employers and seek medical care. Under the law, people who are injured while they are working are entitled to workers’ compensation benefits to pay for their medical costs and treatment. If they are left with a partial or total disability, they may also recover disability compensation to replace a percentage of their lost income. An experienced workers’ compensation attorney might help his or her clients recover all the compensation to which they are entitled following a workplace accident.