Employer Accident Records Crucial for Workplace Safety

No one wants to miss time from work. Every dollar counts. Some employees feel that if they are going to be forced to take time off to recover for an illness or injury sustained on the job that they might lose that job. With employers looking to reduce overhead, some employees are being placed into situations where their jobs have changed drastically. They are being asked to provide more services in the same amount of time, which can increase the amount of workplace accidents.

When an on-the-job injury occurs, employees may be eligible to file for workers’ compensation. Specific requirements must be met, and if an employee waits too long, these valuable benefits may be unavailable. Perhaps most importantly, as soon as an injury occurs, it should be reported to an employer.

Employers are under specific record-keeping requirements when categorizing workplace injuries. This has proved to be somewhat of a grey area for employers, as there are times when they may be uncertain if a specific injury should be considered to have happened in the workplace. This can also prove frustrating for employees, as if the injury is mislabeled it can have an impact on workplace safety.

Employers are required to report injuries and illnesses to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This agency is in charge of worker safety, and can administer fines to employers that are not taking the necessary steps to ensure a safe working environment.

If an injury results in death, days missed from work or requires medical treatment, there is a pretty safe chance that an employer will need to record this information. If an investigation is required, these details will be extremely important. For injured workers, this could be crucial to their livelihoods.

Source: Safety.BLR.com “Safety Records: When Is An Incident Considered Work-Related?” April 9^th, 2012.