The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced it will hold a series of three teleconferences to reach out to the small business community for their input on the agency’s proposed musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) rule. The teleconferences are intended to provide small business with the opportunity to weigh-in on their experience in recording work related MSDs and how the proposed rule would impact them, OSHA said. The rule, which was originally published last year and temporarily withdrawn this year, would require employers to record in a new separate MSD column on the OSHA 300 log those injuries and illnesses that fit within the agency’s proposed definition. The teleconferences, all scheduled in Eastern Daylight Time, will be held April 11 at 1:30 p.m., April 12 at 9:00 a.m., and April 12 at 1:30 p.m. Individuals wishing to participate in one of the teleconferences must contact Regina Powers at [email protected] by April 4.
In related news, the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission recently ruled that OSHA can enforce its requirement for employers to record work-related injuries and illnesses on the OSHA 300 log even when the employer’s duty to record the injuries and illnesses occurred more than six months before the issuance of the citation. Employers are required to retain their logs for five years and, under OSHA’s regulations, there is an obligation for employees to go back and update entries should the circumstances surrounding these injuries change. Hence, an inaccurate entry on an OSHA 300 log constitutes a continuing violation of the rule through the entire five-year retention period.
