Occupational Injury and Illness Recording and Reporting Requirements

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is delaying the effective date of three provisions of the Occupational Injury and Illness Recording and Reporting Requirements rule published January 19, 2001 (66 FR 5916-6135) and is establishing interim criteria for recording cases of work-related hearing loss. The provisions being delayed are Secs. 1904.10(a) and (b), which specify recording criteria for cases involving occupational hearing loss, Sec. 1904.12, which defines "musculoskeletal disorder (MSD)" and requires employers to check the MSD column on the OSHA Log if an employee experiences a work- related musculoskeletal disorder, and Sec. 1904.29(b)(7)(vi), which states that MSDs are not considered privacy concern cases. The effective date of these provisions is delayed from January 1, 2002 until January 1, 2003. OSHA will continue to evaluate Secs. 1904.10 and 1904.12 over the next year. OSHA is also adding a new paragraph (c) to Sec. 1904.10, establishing criteria for recording cases of work-related hearing loss during calendar year 2002. Section 1904.10(c) codifies the enforcement policy in effect since 1991, under which employers must record work related shifts in hearing of an average of 25dB or more at 2000, 3000 and 4000 hertz in either ear.