Reporting fatalities and severe injuries to OSHA (29 CFR 1904.39)
Short answer
Every employer must report a work-related death to OSHA within 8 hours. Report an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours, if it happens within 24 hours of the incident. Call the nearest OSHA office or 1-800-321-6742, or use the online form. Emergency room treatment alone, or observation alone, is not reportable.
- Rule
- 29 CFR 1904.39, last amended 2014 (79 FR 56187)
- Fatality
- Within 8 hours, if the death is within 30 days of the incident
- Hospitalization, amputation, eye loss
- Within 24 hours, if it is within 24 hours of the incident
- Phone
- 1-800-321-6742 or the nearest area office
- Online
- Reporting form on osha.gov
- Who reports
- Every covered employer, even exempt ones; for temp workers, the supervising employer
- Not reportable
- Emergency room only, observation only, public-road crashes outside construction zones, public transportation
- Verified
- eCFR through 2026-10-01; OSHA page read October 2026
Applies to: Every employer under federal OSHA jurisdiction, including employers exempt from routine recordkeeping · Employers in State Plan states, which may set shorter deadlines · EHS, HR and operations leaders who make the call to OSHA
What must you report to OSHA, and how fast?
A death has an 8-hour clock. An admission, amputation or eye loss has a 24-hour one.
| Event | Deadline | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Work-related fatality | Within 8 hours of the death | Death within 30 days of the incident |
| In-patient hospitalization | Within 24 hours of the admission | Admitted within 24 hours of the incident |
| Amputation | Within 24 hours | Within 24 hours of the incident |
| Loss of an eye | Within 24 hours | Within 24 hours of the incident |
This applies to every employer, even those exempt from injury records by size or industry. State Plan states, which run their own OSHA programs, may set shorter deadlines (FAQ 37-2), so check yours.
How do you make the report?
Call or use the online form, at any hour.
- Choose a channelCall or visit the nearest OSHA area office, call 1-800-321-6742 (OSHA's 24-hour line), or use the online form on osha.gov.
- After hoursA voicemail, fax or email to a closed area office does not count (1904.39(b)(1)).
- Give eight factsGive the establishment name, location, time and event type. Add the number of employees and their names, a contact person with phone, and a brief description.
- Count from when you knowIf you learn late, the clock starts when you or any of your agents learn of it, or learn it was work-related (1904.39(b)(7), (b)(8)).
- Record it tooIf you keep OSHA records, the case still goes on the 300 Log and 301.
What do OSHA's terms mean?
OSHA's definitions are narrower than everyday use.
- In-patient hospitalization: formal admission to the in-patient service of a hospital or clinic for care or treatment. The hospital or clinic decides if the person was admitted (FAQ 39-8). An overnight stay does not settle it (FAQ 39-10). Emergency room treatment alone is not reportable. Any care or treatment counts, even if it is limited to first aid list items (FAQ 39-11).
- Amputation: the traumatic loss of a limb or other external body part. It includes fingertip amputations with or without bone loss, medical amputations after irreparable damage, and reattached parts. It excludes avulsions, enucleations, deglovings, scalpings, severed ears, and broken or chipped teeth. Rely on a health care professional's diagnosis (FAQ 39-5).
- Loss of an eye: physical removal of the eye, including enucleation and evisceration. Loss of sight alone is not reportable, unless it leads to in-patient hospitalization within 24 hours of the incident (FAQ 39-3, 39-4).
What is not reportable?
Four situations fall outside the rule.
- A motor vehicle crash on a public street or highway, unless in a construction work zone.
- An event on a commercial or public transportation system, such as an airplane, train, subway or bus.
- A hospital stay for observation or diagnostic testing only.
- A hospitalization, amputation or eye loss more than 24 hours after the incident, or a death more than 30 days after it.
Still record these cases on your OSHA 300 Log if you keep one and they are recordable. A work-related heart attack death or hospitalization is reportable. The local area office director decides whether to investigate.
How do real situations play out?
These examples are illustrative and assume a work-related incident under federal OSHA.
| Scenario | Report to OSHA? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A worker loses a fingertip at a conveyor | Yes, within 24 hours | Fingertip amputations count. |
| A nurse is treated in the emergency room and goes home | No | Emergency room treatment alone is not reportable. |
| A technician is admitted as an in-patient 3 hours after a fall | Yes, within 24 hours of the admission | Within 24 hours of the incident. |
| Scheduled surgery 3 days after a workplace injury | No | The stay is more than 24 hours after the incident (FAQ 39-7). |
| An employee dies 12 days after a workplace fall | Yes, within 8 hours of the death | Death within 30 days of the incident. |
| A delivery driver is hurt in a public highway crash | No | Not in a construction work zone. Record if recordable. |
| A road worker is admitted after a crash in a highway construction work zone | Yes | Construction work zone crashes are reportable. |
| A staffing-agency worker you supervise is hospitalized | Yes, you report | The employer that supervises day to day reports (FAQ 39-9). |
What should the record hold before you call?
OSHA asks for eight facts. The extra items below are practice suggestions, not rule text.
- The eight required facts from step 3.
- When you or your agent first learned of the event.
- Whether the person was formally admitted, and when.
- Who reported to OSHA, when, how, and any case reference.
- A link to the investigation.
The clock does not wait for the investigation, so report with what you know. For recording, see recordable vs first aid and the OSHA recordkeeping overview.
How IncidentKit supports this requirement
| What the rule asks for | Where it lives in IncidentKit |
|---|---|
| Report a fatality in 8 hours; a hospitalization, amputation or eye loss in 24 hours | Severity sets priority. Event types that start a clock flag the deadline. Escalation timers move unacknowledged events to the next person. Automated reportability rules are rolling out. |
| Give OSHA eight specific facts | Lauren asks follow-up questions that capture time, place, people and description. The reporter and reviewer confirm each field. |
| Make the report by phone or online form | IncidentKit does not file with OSHA. A named person reports. The record keeps who was notified and when. |
| Record the case on the 300 Log and 301 as well | OSHA 300 and 301 exports are rolling out. The same incident record is the source for both. |
| Learn of the event quickly, wherever it happens | Quick report takes three fields from a phone, works without signal and becomes a full incident record. |
Product parts involved: Routing and escalation, Incident reporting, Lauren, the AI assistant, QR and quick report, Audit trail. Capabilities marked “rolling out” are being released in stages; see the changelog.
Frequently asked questions
Do I report an emergency room visit to OSHA?
No. Emergency room treatment alone is not reportable. The employee must be formally admitted as an in-patient. The case may still be recordable on your OSHA 300 Log.
When does the 24-hour clock start?
It runs from the hospitalization, if the admission is within 24 hours of the incident. If you learned late, it runs from when you or your agents learned of the event or its link to work.
Does a fingertip injury count as an amputation?
Yes, if it is an amputation. OSHA counts fingertip amputations with or without bone loss. It excludes avulsions such as deglovings, scalpings and severed ears. Rely on a health care professional's diagnosis. If the diagnosis is avulsion, no report is needed.
Do small employers have to report?
Yes. Employers exempt from routine injury records must still report. A company with 10 or fewer employees reports a death within 8 hours and a qualifying hospitalization, amputation or eye loss within 24 hours.
Sources
- eCFR: 29 CFR 1904.39, Reporting fatalities, hospitalizations, amputations, and losses of an eye (current through 2026-10-01)
- OSHA: Report a fatality or severe injury
- OSHA: 29 CFR 1904.39 regulation text
- OSHA: Part 1904 recordkeeping frequently asked questions (items 39-1 to 39-11)
- OSHA: FAQ 39-5, amputations and avulsions
- OSHA: FAQ 39-11, in-patient hospitalization and first aid care
Reviewed against the sources above on Oct 5, 2026. Rules change: confirm current requirements with the issuing body or your counsel before relying on any summary.
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