The Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA") released a final rule expanding the reporting requirements for employers to notify OSHA when a worker is killed on the job or sustains a work-related inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye. This new rule went into effect on January 1, 2015.
The old rule required employers to report all work-related fatalities and hospitalizations of three or more employees within eight hours of the incident. The new rule keeps the duty to notify OSHA of all work-related fatalities within eight hours, but adds a new requirement to report all work-related inpatient hospitalizations, amputations, and losses of an eye within 24 hours. Employers with 10 or fewer employees still are exempt from recordkeeping requirements, but will be responsible for following the reporting rules.
Employers immediately should review this new rule, change their policies, and train their supervisors regarding compliance. According to a recent report of the Occupational Safety and Health Division of the North Carolina Department of Labor, there were 40 workplace fatalities in North Carolina in the last fiscal year. In the event that such a tragic event occurs, employers need to be prepared to understand and implement these new requirements.
This post is not intended to give, and should not be relied upon for, legal advice in any particular circumstance or fact situation. No action should be taken in reliance upon the information contained in this post without obtaining the advice of an attorney. If you have questions concerning this post, please contact William A. Oden, III at wao@wardandsmith.com.
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This article is not intended to give, and should not be relied upon for, legal advice in any particular circumstance or fact situation. No action should be taken in reliance upon the information contained in this article without obtaining the advice of an attorney.
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