The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, commonly referred to as OSHA, is a sector of The United States Department of Labor. Their goal is to assure safe and healthy working conditions for all working men and women by setting and enforcing standards. Any business with more than ten employees is required to adhere to OSHA standards and complete their training regimens on work safety.
OSHA’s strict workplace safety inspections have been shown to reduce injury and fatality rates in the workplaces in which they are enforced. Part of what makes this so successful is the act of employers reporting work-related injuries and fatalities. But it can be tricky to know for sure which types of injuries need to be reported.
Here are five injuries that should be reported to OSHA if they ever occur at your workplace.
Loss of Consciousness
OSHA considers any work-related injury or illness, which involves a loss of consciousness to be very serious and would like them to be reported immediately after they happen. This can include concussions, seizures, strokes, fainting, harm inflicted by another person, or many other things.
Days Away from Work, Restricted Work, or Transfer of Jobs
If a work-related injury or illness causes an employee to miss any days of work at all – even if only one, it needs to be reported to OSHA. If the employee returns to work but is not able to do all that their job requires of them because of the injury, this would be considered restricted work and should also be reported.
It should also always be reported if a transfer of jobs is required, like moving to a desk position rather than one which requires the employee to be on their feet.
Injury or Illness Requiring Medical Treatment Beyond First Aid
This circumstance is pretty straight-forward. Any work-related injury which requires a trip to the doctor needs to be reported to OSHA.
Cancer or Other Chronic Diseases
Any time an employee is diagnosed with any type of cancer that is deemed to be work-related (for example, a tumor that was caused by the prolonged exposure to a particular chemical), OSHA should be notified. This goes for all other chronic diseases and illnesses too.
Fractured or Cracked Bones or Teeth and Punctured Eardrums
If an employee injures him or herself at work in a way that fractures or cracks a bone or tooth, OSHA needs to know. This also goes for punctured eardrums, hearing loss, or other injuries to the ear.
OSHA is a highly important agency of the Department of Labor and helps to keep us all safe at our workplaces. As an employer, you should always be complying with OSHA. Also, please make sure to be diligent about keeping a log of injuries and illnesses which occur at your workplace so that they can be reported to OSHA as early as possible. If all employers do their part, we can continue to make workplaces in America even safer.
