The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) collects and compiles worker injury data, but its reporting system contains "disincentives that may discourage workers from reporting work-related injuries and illnesses to their employers and disincentives that may discourage employers from recording them," according to a recent report from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO). Examples include:

...workers may not report a work-related injury or illness because they fear job loss or other disciplinary action, or fear jeopardizing rewardsbased on having low injury and illness rates. In addition, employers may not record injuries or illnesses because they are afraid of increasing their workers’ compensation costs or jeopardizing their chances of winning contract bids for new work. Disincentives for reporting and recording injuries and illnesses can result in pressure on occupational health practitioners from employers or workers to provide insufficient medical treatment that avoids the need to record the injury or illness.

GAO estimates that a third of US employers face these pressures. Still other factors undermine the accuracy of employers' injury and illness data, said GAO, including "a lack of understanding of OSHA’s recordkeeping requirements by individuals responsible for recording injuries and illnesses."

GAO recommends that OSHA:

(1) require inspectors to interview workers during records audits, and substitute other workers when those initially selected are unavailable;

(2) minimize the time between the date injuries and illnesses are recorded by employers and the date they are audited;

(3) update the list of high hazard industries used to select worksites for records audits; and

(4) increase education and training to help employers better understand the recordkeeping requirements.

GAO says OSHA has agreed with the changes.

Congratulations to the management and production teams at these facilities for their recent safety achievements:

• Cargill Salt - Watkins Glen, NY evap plant, 600,000 hours
• Cargill Deicing Technology - Avery Island, LA mine, 500,000 hours
• Compass Minerals - Duluth, MN processing facility, 200,000 hours & six years
• Cargill Deicing Technology - Lansing, NY mine, 100,000 hours
  
• Cargill Salt - Newark, CA processing facility, 100,000 hours
  
• Compass Minerals - Chicago, IL processing facility, 100,000 hours & two years
  
• Sifto Canada - Goderich, ON evap plant, 100,000 hours & one year
  
• Cargill Salt - Buffalo, IA terminal, six years
• Cargill Salt - Cincinnati, OH terminal, four years
  
• Cargill Salt - Hutchinson, KS evap plant, two years
  
• Cargill Deicing Technology - Cleveland, OH mine, one year