Establishment vs Company Size in OSHA Recordkeeping
Company size decides the 10-employee exemption; establishment size decides electronic submission to the ITA.
The short answer
Company size decides the 10-employee exemption; establishment size decides electronic submission to the ITA. Industry exemptions are also applied per establishment, using each establishment's own NAICS code.
This is where otherwise careful teams make surprisingly expensive mistakes.
The rule in plain English
Two partial exemptions decide whether you keep routine OSHA injury records. A company with 10 or fewer employees at all times during the previous calendar year is exempt (29 CFR 1904.1), and the count is company-wide across all locations. An establishment in an industry listed in Appendix A to Subpart B is exempt (29 CFR 1904.2), and that test is applied establishment by establishment using its NAICS code. Neither exemption covers severe injury reporting: every employer reports a fatality within 8 hours and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye within 24 hours (29 CFR 1904.39). An exempt employer must also keep records if OSHA or BLS asks in writing.
How it plays out on site
Use company peak employment for the small employer exemption and establishment size for ITA coverage. Scope mistakes are expensive because they repeat every year: a wrong exemption means a missing log, a missing 300A, and sometimes a missed ITA submission. The fix is to answer each scope question with the right unit (company-wide headcount for the size exemption, the establishment's NAICS code for the industry exemption) and to write the answer down.
Operations leaders rarely make the recordkeeping call, but they control the schedules, postings, and site managers that make the deadlines work.
The common mistake
Teams sometimes apply the 10-employee company rule to electronic submission decisions by mistake.
Scope sits upstream of everything else: whether you keep a log decides whether you certify and post a 300A, and whether you must submit to the ITA at all.
Edge cases
- Multi-entity businesses should document which employer and establishment each worker belongs to.
- Part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers you employ count toward the 10-employee test.
Worked example
A manufacturer has 300 employees across three plants of 180, 90, and 30. The company is far above 10, so every plant keeps a log. For the ITA, each plant stands alone: the 180-person plant submits 300A and, if its code is on Appendix B, case data; the 90- and 30-person plants submit 300A data because manufacturing is on Appendix A.
Checklist
- Answer the exemption question with company-wide peak headcount.
- Answer the ITA question with each establishment's peak headcount.
- Record which employer and establishment each worker belongs to.
- Keep the two decisions separate in your records.
What to keep in the case file:
- Peak company-wide headcount for the prior year, with its source
- Each establishment's NAICS code and how it was chosen
- Any written notice from OSHA or BLS
- Your severe-injury reporting procedure, which applies regardless of exemption
Where 300log helps
300log keeps each establishment's NAICS code and industry description with its records, so exemption and ITA coverage checks start from the code you actually file under.
For a quick answer without an account, use the free ITA coverage checker.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between reporting and recording?
Recording means entering a case on your 300 Log. Reporting means notifying OSHA directly about a fatality or severe injury. They have different triggers, deadlines, and exceptions.
Can an exempt employer be asked to keep records?
Yes. OSHA or BLS can notify you in writing that you must keep records for a coming year, and then you must.
Does the 10-employee rule count all locations?
Yes. It uses peak employment for the whole company during the previous calendar year, including part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers you employ.
If we are exempt, do we still report serious injuries?
Yes. Fatalities must be reported within 8 hours, and in-patient hospitalizations, amputations, and losses of an eye within 24 hours, whether or not you keep records.
Sources
Primary regulation and agency guidance this article relies on.
- [1]29 CFR 1904.1: Partial exemption for employers with 10 or fewer employeesOccupational Safety and Health Administration · osha.gov(opens in a new tab)
- [2]29 CFR 1904.41: Electronic submission requirementsOccupational Safety and Health Administration · osha.gov(opens in a new tab)
- [3]OSHA ITA Coverage ApplicationOccupational Safety and Health Administration · osha.gov(opens in a new tab)
Written and reviewed by the 300log Editorial Team. Guidance, not legal advice: confirm edge cases with OSHA or counsel.