August 8, 2008
Did you know...?
Work Injury Underreporting Scrutinized
It's estimated that up to 70 percent of work-related injuries and illnesses may not be listed in the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistic’s Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illness, according to a new Congressional committee report. The BLS survey features an annual estimate of non-fatal workplace injuries and illnesses.
In Hidden Tragedy: Underreporting of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses it is stated that strong evidence from academic studies, media reports and worker testimony cast serious doubt on the accuracy of employer self-reporting of work-related injuries, illnesses and fatalities.
The report reviews findings from a collection of studies on underreporting and identifies a number of contributing factors. Additional explanations for underreporting were highlighted in testimony given during a June 19, 2008 committee hearing. Given that workplace inspections, enforcement actions, and occupational health and safety interventions are often triggered by injury and illness incidence rates, the findings have potentially serious ramifications.
The report states that if these estimates are accurate, the nation’s workers may be suffering three times as many injuries and illnesses as official reports indicate. Without accurate injury and illness statistics, employers and workers are unable to identify and address safety and health hazards, and policy makers are unable to assess the state of workplace safety in the U.S.
In the report, the committee suggests that the U.S. Labor Department and its agent, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), allow employers to underreport injuries and illnesses to “demonstrate the effectiveness of their programs and fight off criticism that OSHA has abandoned its original mission of setting up and enforcing workplace safety and health standards.”
Reasons for Underreporting
OSHA requires employers to record occupational injuries and illnesses on a “300 log” and report collective findings to federal authorities. As a result, injuries and illnesses counted by the BLS are confined to OSHA-recordable, non-first-aid cases.
The Congressional committee suggests there are “strong incentives to underreport.” For example, businesses with relatively low injury and illness incident rates:
• are less likely to be inspected by OSHA or face fines;
• often save on workers’ compensation insurance premiums; and
• are attractive candidates for government contracts.
Other factors that may contribute to underreporting include:
• employees who are rewarded for keeping incident rates down;
• difficulty with linking conditions such as musculoskeletal disorders and illnesses with long latency periods to specific work activities;
• lack of familiarity with reporting requirements; and
• employees who feel intimated and consequently may not report injuries when they occur.
To view the report and testimony heard by the Committee on Education and Labor, visit http://edlabor.house.gov/hearings.
*Please feel free to forward this information to any member of management in your company who would benefit from it.*
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