Question: While welcoming a guest to the office and escorting them in the elevator, an employee is exposed to heavy perfume. The employee has non-occupational asthma and is forced to self-medicate using a rescue inhaler that was prescribed by their personal physician. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. Even though the asthma is a pre-existing condition, OSHA states that a pre-existing illness can become recordable when an event or exposure in the work environment significantly ag

Question: While hauling a bag of trash out to the dumpster an employee was struck in the eye by a Magpie and suffered a corneal abrasion. A doctor provided an eye patch and a prescription of antibiotic eye drops. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. An eye patch is considered only first aid but prescription antibiotics are medical treatment beyond first and therefore this incident must be recorded. ​ ​1904.7(a) You must consider an injury or illness to meet the general recording cr

Question: An employee was dancing in her office after being informed of a promotion. As a result of an overzealous twirl, she tripped and fractured her arm when it struck a desk. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. A fractured bone is considered a significant injury and must be recorded - even if no medical treatment, restricted work or days away occurs. Lunch breaks are considered assigned working hours for injury and illness recordkeeping purposes. ​ 1904.7(b)(7) OSHA believes t

Question: An employee was spreading butter on a piece of toast as a snack for work. The butter knife slipped and stabbed the webbing between the index and middle fingers, resulting in four stitches. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. Preparing food or drink for personal consumption is a listed recordkeeping exception. ​ 1904.5(b)(2)(iv) You are not required to record injuries and illnesses if (...) The injury or illness is solely the result of an employee eating, drinking, or prep

Question: An employee is stung on their neck by an unknown insect and the on-site nurse observes that the employee is not having a serious reaction and provides ice to reduce minor local swelling. The employee leaves work and decides to see their family doctor. The family doctor provides prescription antibiotics to the employee and recommends taking 2 days off until healed. The employee reports the doctor visit, medical treatment and recommendation for time off work to the em

Question: On their lunch breaks, warehouse employees set up a milk crate challenge. The challenge involves stacking milk crates to create a staircase up and down and then trying to balance your way across it. The first employee to attempt is an office employee, who falls onto the concrete floor. An x-ray shows a fractured collar bone, but no medical treatment, restricted duties or days away are recommended by the doctor. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. A fractured bone is cons

Question: A bee flew into the mouth of a maintenance employee who was mowing the grass. The bee became lodged in the employee's throat and stung him. The employee had great difficulty breathing and the occupational health nurse provided the employee with OTC Benadryl. The employee was taken to the emergency room but the doctors did not feel the need to provide any treatment because by the time he arrived he was breathing normally. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. The OTC Benadry

Question: Employees in a shop were heating a lava lamp with a torch when the lamp exploded. Glass shrapnel injured an employee's eye, resulting in a loss of his eye. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. It is recordable because it occurred during normal working hours, within the work environment and is not a listed exception. The loss of the eye is also reportable and must be reported to OSHA within 24 hours. ​ 1904.7(a) Basic requirement. You must consider an injury or illness to

Question: A CEO is meeting with a potential investor at a golf course. While golfing, the CEO became frustrated and he struck a bench with his golf club. The shaft of the club broke and bounced back at him and pierced his calf. He was rushed to the ER, and ultimately received stitches and work restrictions. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. The incident is considered work-related because the CEO was participating in a work-related meeting at the golf course. He was there as a co

Question: An employee was waking up in the morning to prepare to go to work when a cow fell through his ceiling and crushed him to death. His house was on a hill and the cow managed to climb onto his roof. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. The employee was outside normal working hours and not geographically within the worksite. Even if the employee had begun his commute to work when the incident occurred, the commute is specifically listed as an exception and incidents that occur

Question: A maintenance employee fell to his death when he threw himself against a window on the 28th floor of a skyscraper. He was demonstrating to a group of visiting executives that the glass was unbreakable. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. The death is recordable and reportable to OSHA and must be reported within 8 hours. ​ 1904.7(a) Basic requirement. You must consider an injury or illness to meet the general recording criteria, and therefore to be recordable, if it resu

Question: An employee dies after receiving an atomic wedgie from his coworker during a disagreement about how to properly use a piece of equipment. The cause of death was asphyxiation because his underwear had been pulled up over his head. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. Workplace violence is not a listed exception for OSHA recordkeeping purposes. This incident must also be reported to OSHA within 8 hours. ​ Letter of Interpretation The Recordkeeping rule contains no general e

Question: An employee is sitting outside at a worksite on their lunchbreak. Using their own folding knife, the begin carving a stick. The knife slips and injures their palm. They are taken to an emergency room and receive several stitches. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. Breaks are considered part of a normal workday and the activity the employee was participating in, is not a listed exception from the geographical presumption of work-relatedness. Since stitches are considered

Question: An inexperienced employee was using a piece of heavy machinery to push dirt and clear vegetation at a worksite was severely injured when a large cactus fell over him and onto his lap. He received surgery, was prescribed antibiotics and instructed to take several weeks off of work by his doctor. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. The injury was work-related and resulted in a recommendation to take time off by a licensed healthcare professional. This incident should be re

Question: An employee experiences heat stress while working outside on a hot day. His supervisor sends him to the occupational health nurse who instructs him to drink fluids. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. Drinking fluids for relief of heat stress is specifically listed as first aid by OSHA and is not recordable. ​ 1904.7(b)(5)(ii) What is "first aid"? For the purposes of Part 1904, "first aid" means the following: 1904.7(b)(5)(ii)(N) Drinking fluids for relief of heat stress.

Question: An employee splashed diluted chemical in her eye and immediately washed it out at an emergency eye wash. She sees a doctor and the doctor found no burns or damage to the eye but observed the pupil reacted to the chemical by dilating itself. The doctor provided an eye patch to the employee and instructed her to wear it for one week. After one week the doctor instructed the employee to discontinue use of the eye patch. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. Eye patches as trea

Question: The manager discovers that a former employee who voluntarily separated from the company 5 years ago had a recordable injury. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. During the five-year storage period, you must update your stored OSHA 300 Logs to include newly discovered recordable injuries or illnesses and to show any changes that have occurred in the classification of previously recorded injuries and illnesses. ​ 1904.33(b)(1) Do I have to update the OSHA 300 Log during th

Question: A group of employees start a game club and meet in the office space at work to play board games. The company has provided approval for the club. While playing a game, one employee tosses candy into another's mouth from across the room and it becomes lodged in their throat. A fellow employee manages to clear their airway but only after the employee lost consciousness. Is it recordable? Answer: NO. The incident personal tasks outside of the employees' assigned work ho

Question: To celebrate the dedicated service of a 40-year employee, the CEO takes him and his team out for lunch at a restaurant. The entire team gets food poisoning from the meal and each are hospitalized. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. A company-provided meal that resulted in food poisoning is specifically noted as work-related in the recordkeeping guidelines. ​ 1904.5(b)(2)(iv) If the employee is made ill by ingesting food contaminated by workplace contaminants (such as le

Question: During a bring your pet to work day, one employee brought a pet newt to the office. Another employee later swallowed the newt on a dare from his coworkers, unaware that the newt's skin produced a potent toxin that could kill him. He died later that day from pulmonary arrest. Is it recordable? Answer: YES. There are no exceptions for injuries caused by animals (even pets) at work. ​ 1904.5(a) You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or e