Work Injuries Down?
Check Your OSHA Logs
UE News, January, 1999
The U.S. work injury and illness rate went down in 1997 to its lowest
level in OSHA’s history, according to data released by the federal Bureau of Labor
Statistics (BLS) just before Christmas.
This is the fifth consecutive year that this rate has dropped. It now
stands at 7.1 work injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers for all private
industries. (In other words, about 7 out of every 100 full-time workers — seven
percent — on average are injured or made ill by their jobs each year.) This is less
than the rate for any year since 1971, when OSHA went into effect.
A total of 5.7 million workers suffered work injuries in 1997; and 430,000
suffered work illnesses, including carpal tunnel and other repetitive motion conditions.
Almost two thirds (64 percent) of the 430,000 illnesses were repetitive motion cases.
So is the U.S. workplace now safer than at any time since 1971? I
don’t think so, despite this rosy data. The problem, as I and others see it, is that
the number of OSHA inspections has been at historically low levels over the past five
years. Thus employers know that if they under-report injuries and illnesses, especially
many of the less serious ones, they are not likely to get caught.
As labor representatives have repeatedly told OSHA leaders, a strong,
steady OSHA enforcement program is needed to keep employers honest. Without it, many
employers will slack off on compliance with OSHA standards, and under-report injuries and
illness. This, I believe, largely explains the drop in reported injuries and
illnesses over the past five years.
However, this doesn’t mean the BLS data is useless. It tells us, for
example, about the relative rates of injuries and illnesses in different industries. After
all, if we assume that employers in all industries under-report the data by about the same
percentage, then the relative injury rates among different industries would still be
approximately correct.
FEBRUARY OSHA LOG
During the month of February we will have an opportunity to check out
whether the employers in the plants and workplaces our union represents are
under-reporting our work injuries to OSHA. As you know, every year during the month of
February each and every workplace covered by federal or state OSHA must post a copy of
OSHA Form 200, a summary sheet of occupational injuries and illnesses in the plant during
the past year (1998). These log sheets must be posted in an area in which employees
regularly gather. (That is, employers can’t post the log sheet outside the plant
manager’s office if workers don’t regularly go by there, nor can they post it in
another building where workers in your shop rarely go.)
Check the injuries and illnesses reported for your shop or plant. A
reportable OSHA incident is one which was work-related, and which requires medical
treatment beyond first aid. So if you or a fellow or a sister worker had to be sent out to
a local clinic to stitch up a cut, or if you received a burn which was treated by the
plant nurse and involved bandages which had to be changed regularly, or if you had to be
shifted to a lighter job for a few days because of a work injury, these incidents were
reportable on the OSHA log. If they were not listed, or if there were any other incidents
requiring days lost or more than first aid, you should report this to your local’s
health and safety committee or to a union officer. Then this can be brought to
management’s attention — let them know that the union is keeping an eye on their
reporting and that we insist that the reports to OSHA be accurate.
Also, check that all of the workers’ compensation claims settled this
year are reported as OSHA incidents. (If the claim is contested by the company’s
insurance firm, they do not have to report it until after the comp system
determines that it is work-related.)
If there are many work-related injuries and illnesses not reported for
1998, your health and safety committee should insist that a corrected version be posted to
replace the original one. If the company refuses to correct its errors, it may be possible
to file a grievance under the health and safety clause in your contract, and your local
may wish to do this. Finally, your local may want to report this to OSHA as a violation of
its OSHA log requirements. However, given OSHA’s anemic enforcement record recently,
I would not suggest this as an effective course of action. As always, I’d
suggest handling this like most other workplace issues through the union and directly with
management. Calling in third parties like OSHA often complicates the resolution of a
problem.
