For many of the state-governed establishments, the new OSHA electronic recordkeeping policy may have seemed like something of little concern, until now. Last week the U.S. Dept. of Labor announced that state-government and local-government establishments covered under state plans are required to electronically submit injury and illness information to the OSHA Injury Tracking Application (ITA) as well.

In what some might consider a controversial move, federal-level OSHA has stepped over the state level agencies’ rulings. This comes after an official review of the guidelines put in place back in 2016 when the “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses” regulation was finalized.

Originally, state and local level governments might have had the opportunity to decide whether or not they would adopt the policy. Now OSHA has announced that they will not be giving the state-level agencies that option.

Who’s Affected Now?

Any establishment with 250 or more employees or any establishment with 20-249 employees, in certain industries with historically high rates of injuries are required to submit data electronically through the OSHA ITA portal. Establishments must make sure that their 300A for 2017 is submitted before July 1, 2018, otherwise they will be facing citations and quite possibly fines.

Time is running out if you haven’t begun digitizing your data. OSHA has made it clear that they won’t be giving much leeway for establishments who are late in filing. Don’t let this policy be a burden to your safety program – rather, use this as an opportunity to improve and enhance the way you manage your safety information. Have questions on digitizing your reporting? Contact the experts at Sospes below.

The Latest Announcement From OSHA:

“Employers can now begin to electronically report their Calendar Year (CY) 2017 Form 300A data to OSHA. All covered establishments must submit the information by July 1, 2018. Employers can view their submitted CY 2016 Form 300A summary information, but they cannot edit or submit additional 2016 data on this website. Remember, not all establishments are covered by this requirement. To review which establishments need to provide their 2017 data, click here.

Covered establishments with 250 or more employees are only required to provide their 2017 Form 300A summary data. OSHA is not accepting Form 300 and 301 information at this time. OSHA announced that it will issue a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to reconsider, revise, or remove provisions of the “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses” final rule, including the collection of the Forms 300/301 data. The Agency is currently drafting that NPRM and will seek comment on those provisions.”