OSHA Proposes Changes to Record-Keeping Rule to Protect Privacy
On July 26, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) said it plans to rescind parts of its 2017 record-keeping regulation to protect the privacy of employees injured on the job. OSHA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to protect personally identifiable information or data that could be re-identified with a particular individual by removing provisions of the Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses rule. Specifically, the proposal would amend the regulation "by rescinding the requirement for establishments with 250 or more employees to electronically submit information from OSHA Forms 300 and 301. These establishments will continue to be required to submit information from their Form 300A summaries." According to the notice, "OSHA believes that this proposal maintains safety and health protections for workers while also reducing the burden to employers of complying with the current rule."