OSHA to reduce Obama-era injury report requirements for large companies

[left-of-center2012]

Source: The Hill

The Trump administration has proposed rolling back an Obama-era Labor Department rule requiring companies with 250 or more workers to submit detailed forms to the agency on workplace injuries, a move labor advocates say will allow companies to cover up the extent of injuries.

The department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a notice on Friday stating that it is seeking to roll back the rule passed under the Obama administration that greatly increased the amount of detail supervisors are supposed to provide to the federal government on workplace injuries.

A spokesperson for the Labor Department told NBC News that the rule change would not alter the agency's ability to collect information from companies on workplace injuries and safety violations.

"This proposal maintains safety and health protections for workers while protecting sensitive worker information from public disclosure," communications director Megan Sweeney told NBC. "The data OSHA continues to collect is robust and enables the agency to most effectively protect workers on the job."

Read more: http://thehill.com/regulation/labor/399323-osha-reduces-obama-era-injury-report-requirements-for-large-companies

[Eliot Rosewater]

1. Working people biggest concern is their billionaire boss having to do too much

paperwork to keep them safe on the job site.

Must be, sixty million of them raced out to the polls so this could happen

[empedocles]

2. Folllow the money

[bucolic_frolic]

3. Without statistics we have no learning

Federal regulatory authorities are always compiling statistics. This tells them things, where patterns occur or something particularly out of the ordinary occurs. OSHA uses them. CDC uses them. If they didn't compile statistics no one would be tabulating whether treatments are working, or which ones are better, or where they are occuring. Science and public policy are flying blind without statistics. It's a minor burden for a better world. Also, it can mean economic growth or more profitability. Companies can see opportunity in statistical measurements. Do we need a certain drug, or can we prevent costly injuries?

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. OSHA Trade Release

OSHA Trade Release

U.S. Department of Labor
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Office of Communications
Washington, D.C.
www.osha.gov
For Immediate Release

July 27, 2018
Contact: Office of Communications
Phone: [phone]

The Department of Labor Proposes Rule to Better Protect Personally Identifiable Information

WASHINGTON, DC – The Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to better protect personally identifiable information or data that could be re-identified with a particular individual by removing provisions of the "Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses" rule. OSHA believes this proposal maintains safety and health protections for workers, protects privacy and reduces the burdens of complying with the current rule.

The proposed rule eliminates the requirement to electronically submit information from OSHA Form 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses), and OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report) for establishments with 250 or more employees that are currently required to maintain injury and illness records. These establishments would be required to electronically submit information only from OSHA Form 300A (Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses).

Under the current recordkeeping rule, the deadline for electronic submission of Calendar Year (CY) 2017 information from OSHA Forms 300 and 301 was July 1, 2018. In subsequent years, the deadline is March 2. OSHA is not currently accepting the Form 300 or 301 data and will not enforce the deadlines for these two forms without further notice while this rulemaking is underway. The electronic portal collecting Form 300A data is accepting CY 2017 data, although submissions after July 1, 2018, will be marked late.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to help ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit www.osha.gov.

# # #

For the .pdf of the NPRM, go here:

2018 Federal Register Index Occupational Safety and Health Administration
....

Proposed Rule
....

Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses

DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
29 CFR Part 1904
{Docket No. OSHA–2013–0023}
RIN 1218–AD17
Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses
AGENCY: Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Labor.
ACTION: Proposed rule.

To comment or to view the docket, go here:

https://www.regulations.gov/

Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses, Docket No. OSHA–2013–0023

Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses