Today, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) announced a final rule that will make information regarding workplace injuries and illnesses available online. OSHA already requires many employers to keep a record of injuries and illnesses, but little or no information about worker injuries and illnesses at individual employers is made public. The new regulation requires workplaces with 20-249 employees in high hazard industries (such as agriculture, forestry, construction and manufacturing) and workplaces with more than 250 employees to upload injury and illness data or summaries to OSHA on an annual basis. OSHA will, in turn, post data from these submissions on a publicly accessible website. The new regulation also incorporates OSHA’s existing statutory prohibition on retaliating against employees for reporting work-related injuries or illnesses. Most parts of the final rule becomes effective August 10, 2016. To access the final rule, click here.
