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In an effort to raise awareness and help prevent future accidents in the workplace, employers are required to post a log of work-related accidents beginning on February 1, 2007. The forms must remain posted in a prominent place until April 30, 2007.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, also known as OSHA, is charged with ensuring safe working conditions for US employees. If an employer fails to post the forms for the required length of time, they could be fined and cited by OSHA for non-compliance. Not only does this put employees at risk, but the business could be in jeopardy as well.

Common gathering places are a good place to post the California OSHA 300 form. The form is a log of injuries employees suffered in the prior year (in this case, 2006). Included in the log are any deaths resulting from a work-related accident.

Employers nationwide are required to submit a copy of the log to OSHA each year so OSHA can compile statistics related to workplace safety. Only employers in the private sector are mandated to track injuries sustained on the job. OSHA does not require statistics from government and other public sector employers. Twenty-five states in the US have elected to follow OSHA guidelines in all business environments. These statistics, however, are not included in OSHA’s report on safety in the workplace.

The latest statistics available from OSHA reveal an astonishing 4,214,200 accidents in the workplace in 2005. Of those accidents, 5,702 resulted in death. Over 1 million workdays were lost due to injuries on the job. A total of 270,890 workers suffered painful back injuries. Sprains, strains, and muscle tears accounted for more than half a million injuries and 255,750 people fell at work.

The second most common accident in the workplace is attributed to slips, trips, or falls. It is common to think these types of injuries are minor. However, OSHA statistics from 2005 report that 732 people died as a result of a fall while they were working.

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