OSHA Summary Log: How to Be Compliant

Is your company covered by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) record keeping requirement? If so, you must post your OSHA 300A Summary, or OSHA log, in a conspicuous place for employees to see from February 1 – April 30 each year.

How Do I Know if My Company Must Post an OSHA Log?

Knowing whether your company is subject to OSHA’s record keeping requirement boils down to two factors: your industry and company size.

Companies that are low-risk industries are not required to maintain an OSHA log unless asked in writing to do so. Your company also needs to have employed 11+ employees at any given point during the year to maintain an OSHA injury and illness record.

Which Injuries Should Be Recorded in My OSHA Log?

If your company is required to maintain an OSHA log, any worksite injury or illness from the previous year that needed treatment beyond first aid should be recorded in your OSHA 300 log (page 7 of the OSHA 300 booklet).

Cases that must be recorded in your OSHA Summary Log include:

• Medical treatment beyond first aid
• Days away from work
• Restricted work or transfer to another job
• Loss of consciousness
• A significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or other licensed healthcare professional
• Death

Details of injuries or illnesses that need to be recorded in your OSHA Summary Log include:

• Where and when the injury occurred,
• Nature of the case,
• Job title of the injured employee, and
• Number of workdays missed (or on light duty) due to the work-related illness or injury.

Keep in mind, however, that any company of any industry or size still needs to report serious injuries to OSHA. Those injuries include anything that results in a fatality, in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye.

When and where should my OSHA 300A Summary Log be posted? 

To satisfy the OSHA requirement, you should only post the Summary of injuries from the previous year rather than the detailed OSHA log. The OSHA 300A Summary is found on page 8 of the OSHA 300 booklet.

OSHA requires the previous year’s OSHA 300A Summary to be posted from February 1 through April 30 in a conspicuous place for employees to see, such as the break room. Even if no injuries occurred in the previous year, qualifying employers are required to post the summary to meet the requirements of this law.

Does the OSHA 300A Summary also have to be submitted online? 

In conjunction with posting the summary at work, a separate compliance provision requires some employers to submit the same information recorded in the OSHA Form 300A Summary online. (Learn why here.)

Employers with fewer than 20 employees at the peak of employment during the last calendar year (including full-time, part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers) are excluded from having to submit their OSHA 300A Summary online. However, companies with 20-249 employees in any of these industries must comply with the online record keeping rule.

To submit your OSHA 300A Summary online, please visit Login.gov.

Will Stratus HR submit the OSHA 300A Summary online for me?

If Stratus HR administers your workers’ comp policy AND your company is required to comply due to industry and size, Stratus will also submit your data online. You will receive notification when it is completed.

Clients that administer their own workers’ comp policy will need to submit their information via Login.gov. For assistance, please contact your Stratus Representative prior to Feb 1.

For more information, please contact our HR team (talk or text 801-984-1331). Not a client? Book a consultation and our team will be in touch with you shortly!