OSHA Recordkeeping for Restaurants: Small Business Exemptions and Injury Logs
Full- and limited-service restaurants (NAICS 7221 and 7222) are partially exempt from routine OSHA logs; caterers and contract food service (7223) are not.
The short answer
Full- and limited-service restaurants (NAICS 7221 and 7222) are partially exempt from routine OSHA logs; caterers and contract food service (7223) are not. Every restaurant must still report a fatality within 8 hours and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss within 24 hours.
Restaurants mix small-employer questions, franchise locations, and knife injuries.
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.
Examples of partially exempt industries
Appendix A to Subpart B lists industries by 2007 NAICS code. A few examples:
- 4412 other motor vehicle dealers and 4431 electronics and appliance stores
- 5111 newspaper, periodical, book, and directory publishers, and 5112 software publishers
- 5221 to 5223 banking and credit intermediation
- 5411 to 5418 professional services, such as legal, accounting, engineering, and advertising
- 6111 to 6117 educational services
- 6211 to 6215 offices of physicians, dentists, and other practitioners, outpatient centers, and labs
- 7221 full-service restaurants, 7222 limited-service eating places, and 7224 drinking places
Special food services (7223), such as caterers and food service contractors, are not on the list.
How it plays out on site
Check company size, industry status, establishment ownership, and severe reporting duties before assuming no log is needed. 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.
Restaurant owners juggle turnover and often several locations, so a short written procedure for managers does most of the work.
The common mistake
Teams treat a small location as exempt without checking company-wide employment.
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
- Franchise or multi-location ownership can change the practical recordkeeping setup.
- Part-time, seasonal, and temporary workers you employ count toward the 10-employee test.
Worked example
A restaurant group operates two sit-down restaurants and a catering kitchen. The restaurants are partially exempt, but the catering operation (7223) is not, so it keeps a 300 Log and posts a 300A. When a line cook at one of the restaurants loses a fingertip to a slicer, the manager reports the amputation to OSHA within 24 hours.
Checklist
- Find your NAICS code and check the exemption list.
- If you are not exempt, count company-wide employees.
- Keep a log per establishment if required.
- Post severe-injury reporting steps for managers.
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
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.
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.
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 1904.30: Multiple business establishmentsOccupational Safety and Health Administration · osha.gov(opens in a new tab)
- [3]29 CFR 1904.39: Reporting fatalities, hospitalizations, amputations, and losses of an eyeOccupational 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.