Staffing Agency Injury Reporting: Who Records the OSHA Case
When a staffing agency places a worker with a client that supervises them day to day, the client records the injury, and the agency does not.
The short answer
When a staffing agency places a worker with a client that supervises them day to day, the client records the injury, and the agency does not. If the agency provides the day-to-day supervision, the agency records it.
Staffing injuries need a host versus agency supervision decision before the log entry is made.
The rule in plain English
You record the injuries and illnesses of everyone on your payroll: labor, executive, hourly, salaried, part-time, seasonal, and migrant workers (29 CFR 1904.31). You also record cases for workers who are not on your payroll if you supervise them day to day, such as temporary or leased workers; if a contractor supervises its own people day to day, the contractor records. Each case is recorded once, by the employer that provides day-to-day supervision. Self-employed people are not covered, and owners or partners of a sole proprietorship or partnership are not employees for recordkeeping purposes.
How it plays out on site
Record the case on the log of the employer with day-to-day supervision. Cases slip through when the host site and the staffing agency each assume the other will log them, and get counted twice when both do. The fix is to decide supervision at the start of each engagement, put it in writing, and agree how incident details reach the employer that records.
Staffing coordinators sit between host and agency, so a standard way to share incident details is the most valuable thing you can set up.
The common mistake
Teams duplicate cases on both host and staffing agency logs.
Whoever records the case also counts it in their 300A totals and rates, and supervised workers' hours belong in that employer's hours worked.
Edge cases
- Contract terms can conflict with the practical supervision facts at the worksite.
- A contract clause that assigns recordkeeping to the agency does not override the day-to-day supervision test.
Worked example
An agency places 15 workers at a warehouse under the warehouse's supervisors, and 3 more at the same warehouse as a self-managed crew with an agency lead. Injuries to the 15 go on the warehouse's log; injuries to the self-managed crew go on the agency's.
Checklist
- Document who supervises.
- Communicate with the other employer.
- Keep one recordkeeping owner per case.
- Share updates on treatment and work status.
What to keep in the case file:
- Who directs the worker's tasks, schedule, and methods each day
- The staffing or contractor agreement and what it says about recordkeeping
- Notes from coordination with the other employer about who records the case
- Whether the worker's hours are included in your hours-worked total
Where 300log helps
300log records each case against an establishment, so once you have decided that a supervised temp or leased worker's case belongs on your log, it lands on the right establishment's log and in its 300A totals.
For a quick answer without an account, use the free ITA coverage checker.
Frequently asked questions
Do owners go on the OSHA log?
Owners and partners of a sole proprietorship or partnership are not employees for recordkeeping. Corporate officers who are employees are covered.
Are volunteers covered?
Part 1904 covers employees. A true volunteer who receives no compensation is generally not an employee, but stipends and employer control can change that, so document the relationship.
Do we record injuries to self-employed contractors?
No. Self-employed individuals are not covered by the OSH Act or Part 1904.
Who records a temporary worker's injury?
The employer that supervises the worker day to day, usually the host. Only one employer records the case.
Sources
Primary regulation and agency guidance this article relies on.
- [1]29 CFR 1904.31: Covered employeesOccupational Safety and Health Administration · osha.gov(opens in a new tab)
- [2]29 CFR 1904.29: OSHA Forms 300, 300A, and 301Occupational Safety and Health Administration · osha.gov(opens in a new tab)
- [3]29 CFR 1904.7: General recording criteriaOccupational 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.