Ohio workers may be interested to know that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued a report detailing how well the severe injury reporting program has worked since it became effective on Jan. 1, 2015. The program, which requires employers in federal OSHA states to report severe injuries, eye losses and amputations to the agency within 24 hours, has reportedly been a success.
OSHA reports that the program has led to a reduction in severe injuries but that more still needs to be done. In the first year of the program, 7,636 severe injuries requiring hospitalization were reported. Another 2,644 amputation injuries were also reported. The sectors with the highest percentages of severe injuries were the manufacturing industry at 26 percent of the hospitalizations and the construction industry at 19 percent. Those two industries were also responsible for the greatest percentages of amputation reports, with manufacturing accounting for 57 percent of them and construction accounting for 10 percent.
In an effort to improve overall effectiveness while also cutting costs, OSHA asked 62 percent of the reporting employers to conduct their own investigations and report back to OSHA with strategies that they could use to prevent future occurrences. While OSHA stated that a majority of employers wanted to do what they could to reduce the risks to their employees, it also stated that it believes that half of all companies did not report amputations and severe injuries.
OSHA is in charge of regulating worksites in order to reduce the number of workplace accidents. When an employee is seriously injured in an accident at work, he or she may apply for workers’ compensation benefits. If an employer disputes a claim, an employment law attorney might help to recover benefits.