OSHA proposes delaying recordkeeping rule, and may change it

OSHA has proposed delaying the start of a new electronic recordkeeping rule until Dec. 1, and intends to make a separate proposal to reconsider, revise or remove some of those requirements.

The recordkeeping rule, put in place in May 2016 with an effective date of July 1 of this year, requires employers to electronically submit injury and illness forms to OSHA, which the agency said it would then publish on a searchable website open to the public.

The requirements raised significant concerns among many employers. OSHA said it would remove personally identifiable information before placing the information on the website, but employers were concerned that with the remaining information it would not be difficult for co-workers, neighbors or those with knowledge of the employer’s operation to figure out the employee’s identity.

The data would be made public without any context or explanation as to the circumstances surrounding the injury or illness, and will almost certainly be misused and misconstrued by plaintiffs’ lawyers and others to “shame” submitting employers. Also missing from illness and injury reports is larger context about a company’s commitment to the safety and health of its employees.

This move on the recordkeeping rule by OSHA is the latest in a series of actions by the administration to roll back OSHA-related regulations. Earlier this year, the President signed a measure to eliminate a regulation that would have required firms bidding on government contracts to disclose past safety and labor law violations.

Also reversed was a change in OSHA rules that extended employers’ liability for recording workplace injuries and illnesses to five years.