OSHAidProductsDemosIndustriesPricingMoreClient accessCreate my accountFree🇺🇸ENCreate my accountRegulationsOSHA recordkeeping: the 300 log, 301 reports and 300A summary explained
OSHA recordkeeping (29 CFR part 1904) requires covered employers to record work-related injuries and illnesses on three forms: the OSHA 300 log (the running injury log), the OSHA 301 incident report (one detailed report per case), and the OSHA 300A annual summary (posted every year from February 1 to April 30). Records are kept per establishment, retained for five years, and — for many employers — submitted electronically to OSHA each year by March 2.Two groups are partially exempt from routine recordkeeping: employers with 10 or fewer employees throughout the previous year, and establishments in designated low-hazard industries. But no one is exempt from reporting severe injuries to OSHA — fatalities within 8 hours, hospitalizations, amputations and eye losses within 24 hours. This guide walks through who must keep records, what counts as recordable, each form, and the deadlines.
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Updated on July 14, 2026
Who must keep OSHA records — and who is exempt
By default, every employer covered by the OSH Act must keep injury and illness records. Part 1904 then carves out two partial exemptions:
- Small employers: companies that had 10 or fewer employees at all times during the previous calendar year — counting all employees company-wide, including temporary and part-time workers — are exempt from routine recordkeeping (1904.1).
- Low-hazard industries: establishments whose NAICS code appears on the exempt list in appendix A to subpart B — many offices, shops and services (1904.2).
- Both exemptions are “partial”: exempt employers must still report fatalities and severe injuries under 1904.39, and must keep records if OSHA or the BLS asks them to in writing.
- State-plan states enforce recordkeeping too, and a few extend requirements to public-sector employers — check your state.
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Create my accountFreeWhat counts as a recordable case
A case is recordable when it is work-related, is a new case, and meets at least one general recording criterion (1904.7). Work-related means an event or exposure in the work environment caused or contributed to the condition — with specific exceptions (for example, symptoms merely surfacing at work from a personal condition, or eating food brought from home).
The general recording criteria — any one is enough:
- Death.
- Days away from work (count calendar days, up to a cap of 180).
- Restricted work or transfer to another job.
- Medical treatment beyond first aid — 1904.7(b)(5) lists exhaustively what counts as first aid (bandages, non-prescription medication at non-prescription strength, hot/cold therapy…); anything beyond that list is medical treatment.
- Loss of consciousness.
- A significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or other licensed health care professional (e.g. fractured bone, punctured eardrum), even without the above.
- Special criteria also exist: needlesticks, medical removal, hearing loss (standard threshold shift with total 25 dB), and tuberculosis.
The three forms: 300, 301 and 300A
Three documents, three roles, three deadlines. Equivalent forms (like state workers’ comp reports or insurance forms) may replace the 301 if they contain the same information.
| Form | What it is | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| OSHA Form 300 — Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses | The running log: one line per recordable case, with employee name, date, description, classification and day counts | Enter each case within 7 calendar days of learning about it |
| OSHA Form 301 — Injury and Illness Incident Report | One detailed report per case: how the incident happened, what the employee was doing, the object or substance involved | Complete within 7 calendar days of learning about the case |
| OSHA Form 300A — Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses | Annual totals per establishment (cases, days, injury types) plus average employment and hours worked; no employee names. Must be certified by a company executive — even with zero cases | Post from February 1 to April 30 for the previous year; keep for 5 years |
Electronic submission to OSHA (Injury Tracking Application)
On top of the paper records, 1904.41 requires certain establishments to submit their data electronically through OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application (ITA) by March 2 each year, for the previous calendar year. The scope is establishment-based, not company-based:
- Establishments with 250 or more employees that are required to keep records: submit the 300A summary.
- Establishments with 20–249 employees in designated high-hazard industries (appendix A to subpart E): submit the 300A summary.
- Establishments with 100 or more employees in the highest-hazard industries (appendix B, since the 2024 rule): also submit the detailed OSHA 300 log and 301 report data — with a legal-company-name requirement, and OSHA may publish part of this data.
- Missing the March 2 deadline is a citable violation — a calendar-driven task that software reminders handle well.
Retention, employee access and anti-retaliation
The 300 logs, 301 reports, 300A summaries and any privacy-case list must be kept for five years following the end of the calendar year they cover (1904.33). During that period, the 300 log must be updated with newly discovered cases or changes in classification; the 300A and 301 do not need retroactive updating.
Employees, former employees and their representatives have the right to access the records: the current or stored 300 logs by the end of the next business day, and an employee’s own 301 report likewise. “Privacy concern cases” (sexual assault, HIV, mental illness, needlesticks…) are logged without the employee’s name. Finally, 1904.35 and 1904.36 prohibit discouraging reporting: your procedure for employees to report injuries must be reasonable, and retaliation for reporting is a violation in itself — see workers’ rights under OSHA.
Recordkeeping with OSHAid
In OSHAid, recordkeeping is a by-product of incident tracking rather than a separate chore. When an incident is reported — from the mobile app, with photos, video or audio — the software walks you through the recordability decision, then feeds the case into the OSHA 300 log and generates the 301 report. Day counts for days-away and restricted-work cases update as the case evolves.
At year end, the 300A summary is computed per establishment, ready for executive certification, the February 1 posting and the March 2 electronic submission — with reminders before each deadline. Five-year retention is automatic, and every record is exportable for an inspector. Incidents also feed your hazard assessments, closing the loop between what happened and what you fix. Start free on the pricing page.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I have to keep an OSHA 300 log if I have fewer than 10 employees?
If your company had 10 or fewer employees at all times during the previous calendar year — counting every employee company-wide, including part-time and temporary workers — you are exempt from routine 300/301/300A recordkeeping (29 CFR 1904.1). You must still report severe injuries to OSHA (fatality in 8 hours; hospitalization, amputation, eye loss in 24 hours), and you must keep records if OSHA or the BLS notifies you in writing.
- What is the difference between recording and reporting?
- Is a first-aid case recordable?
- When must the 300A be posted, and who signs it?
- Who must submit records electronically to OSHA?
- How long must OSHA records be kept?
- Are OSHA records public? Can employees see them?
- What are the penalties for recordkeeping violations?
Official sources
The regulatory information on this page is based on the official texts and references below.
- 29 CFR part 1904 — Recording and reporting occupational injuries and illnesses — OSHA
- Injury and illness recordkeeping forms 300, 300A, 301 — OSHA
- Injury Tracking Application (electronic submission) — OSHA
- Partially exempt industries — appendix A to subpart B of part 1904 — OSHA
- Report a fatality or severe injury — OSHA
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Create my accountFreeDownload on theApp StoreGET IT ONGoogle PlayContentsFrequently asked questionsON THIS PAGE — OSHA RECORDKEEPINGWho must keep OSHA records — and who is exemptWhat counts as a recordable caseThe three forms: 300, 301 and 300AElectronic submission to OSHA (Injury Tracking Application)Retention, employee access and anti-retaliationRecordkeeping with OSHAidFrequently asked questionsThe intelligent OSHA companion that automates your field compliance. Mobile app + web console + specialized safety AI agent, built for US workplaces.
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