Minnesota — Workplace Safety

Minnesota operates an OSHA-approved state plan, the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MNOSHA), administered by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 182. MNOSHA covers most private-sector workplaces and all state and local government employers and employees in the state. Federal OSHA retains jurisdiction over federal government employers (including the United States Postal Service), enforcement of the field sanitation standard (29 C.F.R. § 1928.110) and temporary labor camps standard (29 C.F.R. § 1910.142) at agricultural establishments, and establishments owned or operated by Indian tribes on reservations or federal trust lands.

Source: Minnesota Statutes Chapter 182; MNOSHA State Plan

Minnesota requires injury and illness recordkeeping for all employers with more than 10 employees at any time during the calendar year, regardless of industry or NAICS code. This is a significant departure from federal OSHA, which exempts certain low-hazard industries from recordkeeping obligations under 29 C.F.R. § 1904.2.

Adoption of federal standards with one exception

Minnesota adopts federal OSHA's recordkeeping and reporting standard, 29 C.F.R. Part 1904, by reference through Minnesota Rules 5205.0010, subpart 1a. The adoption includes all federal recordkeeping requirements except 29 C.F.R. § 1904.2, which provides partial exemptions for establishments in certain low-hazard industries. By not adopting § 1904.2, Minnesota eliminates the industry-based exemption available under federal law and requires recordkeeping across all NAICS codes.

Forms and documentation

Covered employers must use three forms to track work-related injuries and illnesses:

• OSHA Form 300 (Log of Work-related Injuries and Illnesses) — records each recordable injury or illness during the calendar year
• OSHA Form 300A (Summary of Work-related Injuries and Illnesses) — annual summary that must be posted from February 1 through April 30 each year, even if no recordable injuries or illnesses occurred
• OSHA Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report) — detailed incident report for each recordable case; Minnesota accepts the workers' compensation First Report of Injury (FROI) as an equivalent form

Employers may use equivalent forms in any file format (e.g., Excel, CSV) as long as they meet the requirements in 29 C.F.R. §§ 1904.29(b)(4) and 1904.32(b)(2)(iii). The annual summary (Form 300A) must be certified by a company executive and posted in a conspicuous location accessible to all employees.

Electronic submission requirements

Effective December 18, 2023, Minnesota adopted federal OSHA's electronic reporting requirements through the Injury Tracking Application (ITA), with one modification: all employers in Minnesota, regardless of NAICS code, must submit data if they meet the size thresholds. This differs from federal OSHA, which limits electronic reporting to specific high-hazard industries.

The size-based submission thresholds are:

• Establishments with 20–99 employees must submit Form 300A data annually by March 2
• Establishments with 100+ employees must submit Form 300A, Form 300, and Form 301 data annually by March 2
• Establishments with 1–19 employees have no electronic submission requirement (but must still maintain paper or electronic records if they have more than 10 employees)

These thresholds are establishment-specific; multi-establishment employers must evaluate each location separately based on its employee count.

10-employee threshold

The employee count includes all workers — temporary, part-time, and seasonal — at any point during the calendar year. If an employer had 10 or fewer employees at all times during the year, the employer is exempt from maintaining injury and illness records unless federal OSHA or the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics notifies the employer in writing that it must keep records (for example, if selected for the Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses).

Distinction from workers' compensation claims

OSHA recordkeeping and Minnesota workers' compensation claims are separate systems. Some injuries and illnesses will appear in both systems, but the criteria for recordability differ, and compliance with one system does not satisfy the obligations of the other.

Source: Minnesota Rules 5205.0010; MNOSHA Recordkeeping Standard; MNOSHA Differences from Federal OSHA; Minnesota DLI Recordkeeping Requirements for All NAICS Codes

Employers in Minnesota must retain OSHA workplace injury and illness records for five years following the end of the calendar year to which the records relate. This requirement covers the OSHA Form 300 (Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses), the Form 300A (Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses), and the Form 301 (Injury and Illness Incident Report).

Federal baseline — five-year rule Minnesota has adopted federal OSHA recordkeeping standards by reference (other than the low-hazard industry exemption), including the record retention requirement of 29 C.F.R. § 1904.33(a). Under that provision, covered employers must retain each of these forms, as well as any required privacy case lists, for five years following the end of the calendar year to which they relate.

Updating during the retention period While employers must keep all relevant records, the OSHA rule further requires that during the five-year retention period, employers must update the OSHA Form 300 to reflect newly discovered recordable injuries or illnesses and to correct previously recorded cases. However, employers are not required to update the annual summary (300A) or each 301 report, but may do so voluntarily.

Minnesota’s state plan does not deviate from or extend this federal retention requirement. There is no additional state-layer retention rule for OSHA recordkeeping beyond the federal standard.

Source: 29 C.F.R. § 1904.33; MNOSHA Recordkeeping Standard

Minnesota employers must report certain serious workplace incidents to the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MNOSHA) within strict deadlines. The timing and content of reporting closely track the federal OSHA standard (29 C.F.R. § 1904.39), but must be made directly to MNOSHA for events in Minnesota workplaces during business hours.

What must be reported, and by when:

• Work-related fatalities: Must be reported to MNOSHA within 8 hours of learning of the fatality. This obligation applies to any employee fatality resulting from a work-related incident.
• Inpatient hospitalizations, amputations, or loss of an eye: Any inpatient hospitalization (defined as formal admission to the in-patient service of a hospital or clinic for care or treatment), amputation, or physical loss of an eye must be reported within 24 hours of the employer knowing of the event.

How to report:

• During business hours: Employers must call the MNOSHA Compliance office at (651) 284-5050 or 1-877-470-6742 and speak with a live person; voicemail or messages are not sufficient. MNOSHA emphasizes that speaking directly to a staff member is required to satisfy the reporting duty.
• After hours and weekends: If these incidents occur outside of MNOSHA business hours, employers should call the federal OSHA 24-hour hotline at 1-800-321-6742.

MNOSHA’s reporting requirement applies to all employers covered by the Minnesota State Plan—most private and public sector employers. Reporting holds even if the event occurs after normal business hours or is discovered late (the clock starts when the employer knows, or reasonably should know, of the event).

Source: MNOSHA Compliance — Report an Accident, Fatality or Serious Injury; Minnesota Statutes Chapter 182; 29 C.F.R. § 1904.39

Minnesota employers who violate required recordkeeping rules under the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Act (MNOSHA)—including failures to maintain injury and illness logs (Forms 300/301/300A), post the annual 300A summary, or electronically submit required data—are subject to civil penalties assessed by MNOSHA.

Statutory basis and penalty structure Under Minn. Stat. § 182.666, civil penalty maximums for MNOSHA violations are set by reference to federal OSHA caps and updated annually for inflation. The statute empowers the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) to align state penalty maximums with the most recent adjustment published by federal OSHA (§ 182.666, subd. 2). The statute does not specify fixed dollar amounts; instead, penalty ceilings are set by DLI each year in accordance with federal OSHA's Published Annual Adjustments.

2024 MNOSHA maximum penalties (as published by DLI):

• Willful or repeated violations: Up to $145,027 per violation
• Serious, non-serious, or posting violations: Up to $14,502 per violation

These amounts are published annually by DLI and are current as of 2024. (See the official MNOSHA penalty schedule for updates.)

Types of recordkeeping violations subject to penalty:

• Not maintaining required OSHA injury/illness forms (300, 301, 300A)
• Not posting 300A (Summary) annually from Feb 1–Apr 30 (posting violations are specifically identified in § 182.666, subd. 2)
• Failing to electronically submit required data if subject to DLI’s electronic filing requirement

Each separate instance can be penalized as a distinct violation. MNOSHA holds statutory discretion to adjust penalty amounts downward considering the gravity of the violation, the employer’s history, size, and good faith efforts (see § 182.666, subd. 6). Employers may contest any citation or penalty under the process set by § 182.661.

Always reference the DLI's current penalty schedule for the latest effective rates, as penalties are typically updated each January to track federal inflation adjustments.

Source: Minn. Stat. § 182.666; MNOSHA Penalties

Minnesota operates a state OSHA plan (MNOSHA), enforcing the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Act (Minn. Stat. § 182) and its own anti-retaliation protections. For anti-retaliation under Section 11(c) of the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act), the enforcement agency depends on which body covers the employee.

State-plan coverage: MNOSHA administers and enforces workplace safety and health rules for nearly all private-sector and all public employees in Minnesota, and has its own anti-retaliation provision. Employees who believe they have been retaliated against for engaging in protected safety activities — such as reporting a workplace hazard, participating in an investigation, testifying, or exercising any right under the Act — must file a complaint with MNOSHA within 30 days of the adverse action. Protected activity is defined in Minn. Stat. § 182.669 and includes reporting work-related injuries, filing a safety or health grievance, or otherwise exercising any right under the MNOSHA Act. (See statute and MNOSHA guidance for the full set of protected acts.)

Federal OSHA's role: Federal OSHA retains jurisdiction for Section 11(c) investigations only in rare instances where it has direct workplace authority: worksites run by the federal government, the USPS, some tribal lands, or certain federally regulated agricultural businesses. For nearly all other private-sector employees in Minnesota, federal OSHA refers retaliation complaints to MNOSHA, and does not investigate itself. This allocation of responsibility is confirmed in Minnesota's approved State Plan and OSHA’s own whistleblower guidance.

Filing timeline: The 30-day window for filing retaliation complaints with MNOSHA (from the date of the alleged adverse action) is codified in Minn. Stat. § 182.669, subd. 1.

In summary: for almost all private-sector employees in Minnesota, MNOSHA — not federal OSHA — enforces anti-retaliation rules. Employees should bring whistleblower/retaliation complaints to MNOSHA unless they are employed directly by a federal entity or in a narrow area where federal OSHA retains enforcement.

Source: Minn. Stat. § 182.669; MNOSHA State Plan — Whistleblower Protection; MNOSHA Retaliation Complaints