OSHA LOG QUIZ
Today is the day. Today, you must have completed your OSHA 300 logs for all the work-related injuries and illnesses that happened in 2021. Today, the 300A Summary log gets posted on a bulletin board, or someplace where your employees can find it. It stays there until at least April 30th. So, let’s think about what is recorded on an OSHA 300 and/or 301 to help you finalize that 300A summary. Test yourself with this quiz. Unlike in the past, we are going to give you the answers as we go along. If you disagree, or have questions about any of our answers, please let us know at info@scm-safety.com. We welcome the opportunity to explore this further with you.
Please note that some of these questions are a little non-specific on purpose. You must determine the better answer, not the only answer. And to help you with this quiz, here’s a link to the OSHA 300 logs: https://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/forms.
1. In mid-December, one of your employees fell, twisting his knee. He didn’t need to go to the hospital. He went to urgent care which released him to work, but recommended light duty for two weeks. In addition to his name, job title, the date of the injury, where it happened, and that he had a twisted knee, what else should you record on the OSHA 300 log?
ANSWER: A is the correct answer. Other than recording the date of injury in column D, you do not count that day. You check columns I (job transfer or restriction) and M1 (injury), and then put the number of days on restricted duty in column L.
2. This same employee went back to the urgent care doctor at the end of two weeks and the doctor said his knee needed another two weeks on restricted duty. Now his time on restricted duty is overflowing into January, a new year. How do you record the time off when it covers two different reporting years?
ANSWER: B. You record all the time on the 2021 log, up to 180 days, even if it carries into a new year.
3. Someone comes to work sick on the Monday after Thanksgiving after being off for four days. You make them take a COVID-19 test, which is positive, and you make them go home to isolate. They are off work for 10 days. Three days later, an employee who was working within six feet of the first employee reports having a fever. They take a COVID-19 test, which is also positive. The second employee is off work for 14 days, recovering. Are either of these cases recordable?
ANSWER: C is the better answer. The key to any recordable case is work-relatedness. Because the first employee most likely infected the second by being in close contact with them, we believe the second case to be work-related. It is not clear, but there is a possibility that the first case is not work-related. We recommend you ask the first employee some questions to figure it out.
4. Sadly, one of your employees falls while working on a second-floor roof and is fatally injured. You take swift action, protecting the scene for an investigation, and notify OSHA. Do you record the fatality on the OSHA 300 log?
ANSWER: D. You put all the information (name, job title, date, location, and, in this case, a fall) and check column G for fatality. Then you check column M1 for an injury. There are no other columns to check or fill in.
If you have more questions, we have an OSHA recordkeeping course online! Sign up today!
