Written by Duane Freyberger, Director of SMG Insights | Safety Management Group
The Short Answer: The OSHA 300 Log is an OSHA form used to record work-related injuries and illnesses at your business over a calendar year. Most employers with more than 10 employees must keep one, along with a Form 301 incident report for each case and a Form 300A summary that gets posted from February 1 to April 30. You keep these records for five years, and some employers also submit their data through OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application. The sections below explain each part in plain terms.
When it comes to workplace safety, recordkeeping isn’t just a box to check. It’s a fundamental part of a company’s responsibility to protect its people and comply with the law. The OSHA 300 Log is a key component of that responsibility. Understanding how to prepare, maintain, and post your OSHA logs ensures your organization stays compliant and keeps employees safe.
What is the Purpose of the 300 Log?
The OSHA 300 Log serves a clear purpose. It’s a written log of work-related injuries and illnesses that occur within a business. By recording work-related injuries and illnesses, OSHA and employers can analyze trends, spot hazards, and take steps to prevent future injuries.
This log also provides transparency. It gives workers access to important safety information and holds employers accountable for creating a safe work environment. More than just a requirement, the 300 Log is a tool for building a culture of safety rooted in real-world illness and injury data.
What are the Recordkeeping Requirements?
Employers in certain high-risk industries and all employers with more than 10 employees are required to record serious work-related injuries and illnesses. Businesses with fewer employees, or those in lower-hazard fields, may be partially exempt. Minor injuries requiring only first aid do not need to be logged. Anything involving days away from work, restricted duty, loss of consciousness, or medical treatment beyond first aid must be documented as a recordable injury.
A workplace injury or illness generally counts as recordable when it meets one of these conditions:
- It results in death or a work-related fatality
- It causes days away from work, restricted duty, or a job transfer
- It requires medical treatment beyond first aid
- It involves loss of consciousness
- It is a significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or licensed health care professional
Accurate illness recordkeeping is more than a good habit. It’s a regulatory obligation. Employers must ensure that records are complete, correct, and readily available for review by OSHA or employees upon request. Training the staff responsible for maintaining OSHA logs is key to avoiding errors and meeting OSHA recordkeeping requirements. Good documentation supports the field, not just the audit. As our team often puts it, “Good documentation should support the field, not just satisfy compliance requirements.”
OSHA Forms and Logs
OSHA uses three primary forms to support its injury and illness recordkeeping system. Each has a distinct purpose, and all must be used properly to meet OSHA 300 log requirements. You can find the current versions of each OSHA form on OSHA’s website.
Form 301
OSHA Form 301 is the Injury and Illness Incident Report. It captures the detailed information behind each individual incident, including what happened, how it occurred, and the medical outcome. Think of it as a supporting document for the 300 Log. It provides the story behind the summary of the workplace incident.
For each recordable incident, a new Form 301 must be completed within seven calendar days. Employers can use an equivalent form as long as it contains the same information.
300 Log
The OSHA 300 Log is the actual log of work-related injuries and illnesses. It’s a running record used to classify incidents by type, record the severity, and track details like days away from work or restricted duties.
Each line on the 300 Log represents a single case. It’s a valuable tool for identifying injury patterns, which can inform safety programs and hazard mitigation strategies. In some situations, such as a privacy concern case, the employee’s name is left off the log and handled separately to protect the worker’s privacy.
300A Log
Form 300A is the Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses. Unlike the 300 Log, this form does not list an employee’s name or incident details. Instead, it provides aggregate totals and is used primarily for posting.
Every year, employers must post a completed 300A summary form from February 1 to April 30 in a visible location. This public display gives employees insight into the company’s safety performance for the previous calendar year.
How Long to Keep OSHA 300 Logs?
Employers are required to retain OSHA 300 Logs, 300A summaries, and 301 forms for five years following the end of the calendar year they cover. During this time, the logs must be updated if new information comes to light or a case changes.
Maintaining these records is critical not only for compliance but also for internal safety reviews, audits, and strategic planning. Accurate logs help companies track long-term trends in occupational injury and illness and improve performance over time.
When Do OSHA Logs Need to be Posted?
The OSHA 300A Summary must be posted annually from February 1 through April 30. This applies even if no recordable injuries or illnesses occurred during the year.
Employers covered by the electronic submission rule must also submit their Form 300A data to OSHA electronically through OSHA’s Injury Tracking Application by March 2 of the following year. Certain larger establishments and those in designated high-hazard industries must also submit their 300 Log and 301 form data electronically. Failure to comply with posting or submission rules can result in significant penalties.
Get Help With OSHA Compliance
OSHA compliance is not just about avoiding penalties. It’s about creating a workplace where people can thrive safely. Safety Management Group offers OSHA compliance support, recordkeeping guidance, and OSHA 300 training to help organizations meet their obligations with confidence.
Recordkeeping is one piece of a larger safety picture. Our full range of solutions covers the rest. Some clients need safety professionals embedded alongside their teams, while others want fractional safety leadership without building an internal department. We also help clients qualify their contractors, manage environmental compliance, deliver hands-on training, and turn injury and illness data into better decisions. The goal is to make safety part of how your business runs every day, not something you scramble to sort out before an audit.
If you need a partner to review your logs for accuracy, train the staff who maintain them, or strengthen your safety program as a whole, our safety professionals are here to help. Let our team help you turn compliance into a competitive advantages.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the OSHA 300 Log used for? +
It gives you and OSHA a year-by-year look at what is actually injuring workers so that patterns emerge before they become larger issues. Most employers use it to identify where they need to make changes in training, equipment or processes.
Who needs to maintain an OSHA 300 Log? +
The requirement comes into play at more than 10 employees. If you’re smaller than that, or you work in one of OSHA’s lower-hazard industries, chances are you’re exempt from the regular logging, but you still need to report serious incidents such as a fatality or an inpatient hospitalization.
What is the difference between the 300 Log and the 300A summary? +
The 300 Log is the full running record, one line per case. The 300A leaves off the names and details and just reports your annual totals. The 300A is the one that goes up on the wall every spring.
What injuries must be recorded on the OSHA 300 Log? +
The line to remember is “beyond first aid.” Cuts requiring stitches, injuries keeping someone out of work or on restricted duty, loss of consciousness, and any work-related death are all recorded. Anything a bandage can handle usually is not.
How long do OSHA logs need to be kept? +
Five years after the end of the year for each log. Hold onto the 300, 300A, and 301 for that entire window, and go back and correct a case if the facts change during it.