Injury Recordkeeping & Reporting

OSHA requires many employers to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses, and all employers to report the most severe ones to OSHA quickly.

• Construction
• General Industry

Reporting severe injuries to OSHA (all employers)

Report by calling the nearest OSHA area office, the 24-hour hotline at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742), or online. State plan states may have different reporting rules.

The OSHA recordkeeping forms

• OSHA Form 300 (Log): a list of recordable injuries and illnesses for the year.
• OSHA Form 301 (Incident Report): details of each case, completed within 7 calendar days.
• OSHA Form 300A (Summary): yearly totals, posted where workers can see it from February 1 to April 30.
• Records must be kept for 5 years.

Employers with 10 or fewer employees, and businesses in certain low-hazard industries, are usually exempt from keeping the log (but must still report severe injuries).

What is “recordable”?

A work-related injury or illness is recordable if it results in any of these:

• Death
• Days away from work
• Restricted work or transfer to another job
• Medical treatment beyond first aid (for example, stitches or prescription medication)
• Loss of consciousness
• A significant injury or illness diagnosed by a doctor (like a fracture or punctured eardrum)

First aid only (bandages, cleaning a wound, non-prescription medicine at non-prescription strength, ice, etc.) is generally not recordable.

Last updated: October 1, 2026