Last Wednesday, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a proposed rule in the Federal Register aimed at clarifying for industry that "the duty to make and maintain accurate records of work-related injuries and illnesses is an ongoing obligation." The proposal’s specific clarifications include:

1) OSHA 300 Log. Employers must record every recordable injury or illness on the Log. This obligation continues through the five-year record retention-and-access period. In addition, during that period, employers must update the Log by adding cases not previously recorded and by showing changes to previously recorded cases. 

2) OSHA 301 Incident Report. Employers must prepare a Form 301 Incident Report for each recordable illness or injury. This obligation continues throughout the five-year retention-and-access period. Employers are not required to update the form to show changes to the case that occur after the form is initially prepared.

3) Year-end records review; preparation certification and posting of the Form 300A annual summary. These ancillary tasks are intended to be performed at particular times during each year. They are not continuing obligations.