OSHA 300 log items with 9 shop injury rules

• Enter each recordable injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log and 301 Incident Report within seven (7) calendar days of receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred, as stated by the Legal Information Institute .
• Enter information about your business at the top of the OSHA 300 Log and enter a one or two line description for each recordable injury or illness, according to the Legal Information Institute .
• Complete an OSHA 301 Incident Report form, or an equivalent form, for each recordable injury or illness entered on the OSHA 300 Log, reported by the Legal Information Institute .
• If you have a “privacy concern case,” you may not enter the employee's name on the OSHA 300 Log, published by the Legal Information Institute .
• When an injury or illness involves restricted work or job transfer but does not involve death or days away from work, place a check mark in the space for job transfer or restriction and enter the number of restricted or transferred days in the restricted workdays column, as detailed by GovRegs .

The seven-day window begins the moment you receive information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred. The Legal Information Institute specifies that you must enter each recordable injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log and 301 Incident Report within seven (7) calendar days of receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred, as stated in 29 CFR § 1904.29 . This deadline applies to the initial entry on the log and the completion of the incident report simultaneously. The seven calendar days start when you receive that information.

Washington State Legislature mirrors this federal timeline in its own administrative code. Their rule states that you must enter each recordable injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log and 301 Incident Report within seven calendar days of receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred, as stated in WAC 296-27-01119 . This alignment ensures that shops operating in Washington face the same immediate documentation requirement as the federal standard. If your shop is located in Washington, the state rule reinforces that the seven-day limit is a hard stop for both the log entry and the incident report.

Ohio Laws provides a slightly different phrasing but maintains the same seven-day boundary. Their rule requires that each recordable injury and illness must be entered on the log and summary as early as practicable but no later than seven calendar days after receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred, according to Rule 4167-6-01 . The phrase "as early as practicable" suggests that while seven days is the maximum, you should aim to enter the data sooner if possible. However, the absolute limit remains seven calendar days from the moment you know the injury is recordable.

The following table lists nine OSHA 300 Log entry rules, with each rule attributed to its publishing source.

According to Legal Information Institute , you must enter information about your business at the top of the OSHA 300 Log and enter a one or two line description for each recordable injury or illness. The same source states that you must enter each recordable injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log and 301 Incident Report within seven (7) calendar days of receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred. You must complete an OSHA 301 Incident Report form, or an equivalent form, for each recordable injury or illness entered on the OSHA 300 Log, as reported by Legal Information Institute . For privacy concern cases, Legal Information Institute notes that you may not enter the employee's name on the OSHA 300 Log.

When a case qualifies as a privacy concern, you must not enter the employee's name on the OSHA 300 Log. You may change the injury description only with a reasonable basis to believe it is still identifiable. According to the Legal Information Institute, if you have a “privacy concern case,” you may not enter the employee's name on the OSHA 300 Log ( Legal Information Institute ). The Washington State Legislature provides the specific label to use in that space: enter "privacy case" in the space normally used for the employee's name ( Washington State Legislature ). This labeling protects the identity of the injured or ill employee when another employee, a former employee, or an authorized employee representative is provided access to the OSHA 300 Log under WAC 296-27-02111, as stated by the Washington State Legislature ( Washington State Legislature ).

Beyond omitting the name, you may adjust the description of the injury or illness. The Legal Information Institute notes that if you have a reasonable basis to believe that information describing the privacy concern case may be personally identifiable even though the employee's name has been omitted, you may use discretion in describing the injury or illness on both the OSHA 300 and 301 forms ( Legal Information Institute ). The Washington State Legislature mirrors this rule, stating that if the employer has a reasonable basis to believe that information describing the privacy concern case may be personally identifiable even though the employee's name has been omitted, they may use discretion in describing the injury or illness on both the OSHA 300 and 301 forms ( Washington State Legislature ).

When an injury or illness involves one or more days away from work, you must record the injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log with a check mark in the space for cases involving days away and an entry of the number of calendar days away from work in the number of days column, as stated by GovRegs . This requirement applies specifically to cases where the employee is away from work, distinguishing them from other types of restrictions. The count must reflect calendar days, not just business days, ensuring the log captures the full duration of absence.

If the injury or illness involves restricted work or job transfer but does not involve death or days away from work, you must record the injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log by placing a check mark in the space for job transfer or restriction and an entry of the number of restricted or transferred days in the restricted workdays column, according to GovRegs . This specific entry method ensures that cases involving limitations on work duties are tracked separately from those involving total absence. The check mark and day count must both be present to accurately reflect the nature of the restriction.

For certain injuries and illnesses, you must record them on the OSHA 300 Log using the check box for cases with days away from work and enter the number of calendar days away recommended by the physician or other licensed health care professional, as published by GovRegs . The entry must align with the specific recommendation provided by the licensed professional to maintain compliance with recording criteria.

When an employee departs your shop because of a work-related injury or illness, you cannot simply stop counting days at their last day on the payroll. According to GovRegs , if the employee leaves your company because of the injury or illness, you must estimate the total number of days away or days of restriction/job transfer and enter the day count on the 300 Log. This requirement applies specifically to cases where the departure is directly caused by the recorded condition. You are responsible for projecting the full duration of the absence or restriction.

If the employee is still away from work when you prepare the annual summary, the rules shift slightly to accommodate the ongoing nature of the case. As stated by GovRegs , if the employee is still away from work because of the injury or illness when you prepare the annual summary, estimate the total number of calendar days you expect the employee to be away from work, use this number to calculate the total for the annual summary, and then update the initial log entry later when the day count is known or reaches the 180-day cap. This two-step process ensures your annual summary reflects your best current projection while preserving the accuracy of the permanent log. You must use this estimated figure to calculate the total for the annual summary immediately.

A shop enters a recordable injury on the OSHA 300 Log within 7 calendar days, with a one or two line description. The case has 14 calendar days away from work, so the shop places a check mark in the space for cases involving days away and enters 14. The employee is still away at the annual summary. The shop estimates 40 calendar days, uses 40 for that summary, and updates the log entry later when the count is known or reaches the 180-day cap. The day counts are illustrative.

The first two items address the header and description requirements explicitly stated by the Legal Information Institute. According to the Legal Information Institute , you must enter information about your business at the top of the OSHA 300 Log. The same source requires you to enter a one or two line description for each recordable injury or illness. Washington State Legislature rules also mandate that at the top of the OSHA 300 Log, you enter the business information and a one or two line description for each recordable injury or illness, as cited in WAC 296-27-01119 . The remaining seven items in this section correspond to the deadline, incident report linkage, privacy name, description discretion, days away, restricted work, and employee exit estimation.

Review your current OSHA 300 Log to ensure all recent injuries have a corresponding 301 Incident Report and that privacy cases are marked correctly. See Equipment serial numbers: 8 tracking examples , Recurring work order settings: 8 rules to set , and Flat-rate price updates: 4 apps and edit rules for other shop records.

How many days do you have to enter a recordable injury on the OSHA 300 Log?

According to the Legal Information Institute , you must enter each recordable injury or illness on the OSHA 300 Log and 301 Incident Report within seven calendar days of receiving information that a recordable injury or illness has occurred. This deadline starts when you receive the information, not when the injury happened.

Can you omit an employee's name on the OSHA 300 Log for privacy cases?

Yes, if you have a “privacy concern case,” you may not enter the employee's name on the OSHA 300 Log, as stated by the Legal Information Institute . This rule applies specifically to cases designated as privacy concerns under the cited regulation.

What do you enter in the name field for a privacy concern case?

Enter "privacy case" in the space normally used for the employee's name, according to the Washington State Legislature . This label protects the identity of the injured or ill employee when another employee, a former employee, or an authorized employee representative is provided access to the OSHA 300 Log under WAC 296-27-02111.

How do you record an injury if the employee leaves before the year ends?

If the employee leaves your company because of the injury or illness, you must estimate the total number of days away or days of restriction/job transfer and enter the day count on the 300 Log, reported by GovRegs . You do not leave the field blank; you provide your best estimate based on available information.

Do you need to track days away if the injury exceeds 180 days?

If the employee is still away from work because of the injury or illness when you prepare the annual summary, estimate the total number of calendar days you expect the employee to be away from work, use this number to calculate the total for the annual summary, and then update the initial log entry later when the day count is known or reaches the 180-day cap, according to GovRegs . The 180-day cap applies to the final update of the initial log entry.