OSHA Program to Target Workplaces with Highest Injury, Illness Rates

A new directive (PDF) issued by OSHA updates the agency’s inspection program that directs enforcement resources to workplaces with the highest rates of injuries and illnesses. OSHA’s Site-Specific Targeting program schedules inspections based on injury and illness data submitted by employers. The updated program will use employer-submitted data from Form 300A for calendar years 2017 to 2019 to generate inspection lists of workplaces that have elevated rates of non-fatal injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work, restricted work activity, or job transfer. Work sites that recorded upward trending rates during the same three-year period will also be included on OSHA’s inspection lists under the updated program. In addition, the agency intends to include a random sample of workplaces that did not provide the required Form 300A data to OSHA for 2017, 2018, and 2019. The program does not include construction work sites.

Another change to the program allows the scope of an inspection to be changed from comprehensive to records-only in limited situations—for example, if a compliance safety and health officer determines that incorrect data led to a workplace’s inclusion in the program.

For further details, see OSHA’s press release.