Reporting fatalities, hospitalizations, amputations, and loss of an eye
Washington employers must report certain severe work-related incidents to DOSH (Division of Occupational Safety and Health) within strict timeframes under WAC 296-27-031. These reporting obligations are distinct from routine injury and illness recordkeeping and carry immediate compliance deadlines.
Eight-hour reporting requirement
Employers must report to DOSH within eight hours of a work-related incident that results in:
- A fatality, or
- An inpatient hospitalization of any employee.
This eight-hour rule differs from the federal OSHA standard, which requires reporting only when three or more employees are hospitalized; Washington mandates reporting when a single employee is hospitalized as an inpatient. "Inpatient hospitalization" means formal admission to the inpatient service of a hospital or an equivalent medical facility on an emergent basis for a work-related injury or illness, as defined in WAC 296-900-099(23). Employers must report inpatient hospitalizations that involve medical care or treatment; hospitalizations involving only observation or diagnostic testing need not be reported (WAC 296-27-031(11)).
Twenty-four-hour reporting requirement
Employers must report to DOSH within 24 hours of a work-related incident that results in either:
- An amputation, or
- The loss of an eye
when the incident does not require inpatient hospitalization. WAC 296-27-031(2). An "amputation" means the traumatic loss of an appendage (upper or lower limb or part thereof) or other external body part that has been severed or cut off either completely or partially at the time of injury, or is surgically removed due to irreparable damage (WAC 296-27-001).
Delayed-discovery rules
If the employer does not learn about a reportable event at the time it occurs, the reporting clock starts when the incident is reported to the employer or any of the employer's agents. The same timeframes apply: eight hours for fatality or inpatient hospitalization; 24 hours for amputation or loss of an eye (WAC 296-27-031(3)).
Similarly, if the employer does not learn immediately that a fatality, hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss was work-related, the reporting clock begins when the employer or any agent learns the event resulted from a work-related incident, with the same eight-hour and 24-hour deadlines (WAC 296-27-031(4)).
Reporting methods
Employers must report by:
- Telephone to the department's toll-free number, 1-800-4BE-SAFE (1-800-423-7233), or in person at the nearest DOSH office, or
- Telephone to the OSHA toll-free number, 1-800-321-OSHA (1-800-321-6742).
If the local office is closed, employers must use one of these toll-free numbers (WAC 296-27-031(5)–(6)).
Heart attack incidents
Employers must report when a heart attack occurs in the work environment that results in a fatality or inpatient hospitalization. DOSH will determine whether to investigate depending on the circumstances (WAC 296-27-031(10)).
Source: WAC 296-27-031; WAC 296-900-099; WAC 296-27-001
General duty clause under RCW 49.17.060 — employer obligations
Washington’s general duty clause, codified at RCW 49.17.060, imposes broad, categorical obligations on both employers and employees for workplace safety.
Obligations on Employers RCW 49.17.060(1) requires that "each employer shall furnish to each of their employees a place of employment free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause serious injury or death to their employees." This requirement mirrors the federal OSHA general duty clause but is enforced by Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) under the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA). In addition to addressing specific occupational safety and health regulations, employers have a catch-all duty to identify and correct serious recognized hazards, even when no specific WISHA or DOSH (Division of Occupational Safety and Health) standard addresses the hazard in question.
To comply, an employer must:
- Proactively identify workplace hazards that are "recognized" within the industry (i.e., known risks that a reasonable employer in the field would be aware of), whether or not they are specifically regulated by a WISHA or DOSH standard.
- Abate (eliminate or materially mitigate) those hazards to provide a workplace free from conditions causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm.
- Stay current on evolving workplace hazards relevant to the employer’s operations, even as industry standards or safety knowledge develops.
A violation can be found when:
- A condition or activity in the workplace presents a hazard to employees,
- The hazard is recognized,
- The hazard is causing or is likely to cause death or serious physical harm,
- There is a feasible and useful method to correct the hazard.
The general duty clause operates as a safety net: even if the hazard is not explicitly covered by a written DOSH rule, L&I may cite an employer under RCW 49.17.060 for failing to provide a safe workplace. (For example: exposures to newly emergent chemical hazards, or fall risks in unregulated environments.)
Obligations on Employees RCW 49.17.060(2) separately requires each employee to comply with occupational safety and health standards and rules applicable to their actions and conduct in the workplace.
Best Practices Employers should regularly assess workplace risks (including new hazards as technology or practice evolves), document hazard correction efforts, and encourage active employee participation in hazard reporting and abatement. L&I provides compliance resources and hazard lists through its DOSH program.
Source: RCW 49.17.060
Exceptions to Washington severe injury and fatality reporting requirements (WAC 296-27-031)
Washington’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) sets mandatory reporting requirements for fatalities, inpatient hospitalizations, amputations, and loss of an eye under WAC 296-27-031. Practitioners reasonably ask: are there any exceptions to what must be reported, or to which employers are covered?
No broad exemptions: nearly all employers covered
WAC 296-27-031 applies to nearly all employers in Washington subject to the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA). This includes both public and private sector employers, with coverage limits only for worksites under exclusive federal OSHA jurisdiction (federal agencies, certain tribal lands, and some maritime/offshore work, per WAC 296-800-110). Unless the workplace is specifically carved out under WISHA’s jurisdictional scope, reporting is required.
Incidents not reportable — regulatory exclusions
Some specific circumstances are carved out:
- Injuries outside the work environment: Events where the injury/illness occurs wholly outside the work environment or is demonstrably not work-related (per WAC 296-27-031(4); WAC 296-27-01103(7)).
- Hospital admissions for observation/diagnosis: Inpatient hospitalizations do NOT need to be reported if the employee was admitted only for observation or diagnostic testing, not for medical treatment (WAC 296-27-031(11)).
- Non-inpatient events: The 24-hour reporting requirement for amputations or loss of an eye only applies when there is no inpatient hospitalization (WAC 296-27-031(2)). If inpatient hospitalization results, those are reportable under the 8-hour rule instead.
- Heart attack discretion: Fatalities or inpatient hospitalizations caused by a heart attack at work must be reported, but DOSH will determine whether to investigate based on circumstances (WAC 296-27-031(10)).
No waiver for small employers or low-hazard industries
WAC 296-27-031 and its referenced exclusions do not create blanket waivers for employers based on size, industry, or other characteristics. Unless carved out by WISHA’s general exclusions, all employers with recordkeeping obligations must comply.
Summary
- Covered: Nearly all Washington employers (public and private) except those under exclusive federal OSHA jurisdiction.
- Excluded: Non-work-related injuries, hospital admissions for observation/diagnosis, or events not meeting the regulatory definitions.
Source: WAC 296-27-031; WAC 296-27-01103; WAC 296-800-110
DOSH penalties for WISHA violations — categories, calculation, and adjustments
Washington’s WISHA statute (RCW 49.17.180) authorizes the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) to issue civil and—where warranted—criminal penalties for workplace safety violations. The precise penalty depends on the violation category, regulatory scoring methods, and several mandatory adjustment factors.
Statutory and regulatory penalty tiers
- Serious violations: Minimum $100, up to a maximum of $7,000 per violation. (RCW 49.17.180(3))
- Willful or repeated violations: Minimum $5,000, up to $70,000 per violation. (RCW 49.17.180(2))
- Other-than-serious (general) violations: May be assessed up to $7,000 per violation. DOSH may, as a practical matter, issue no penalty for a first-time general violation except where otherwise directed by statute or regulation. (RCW 49.17.180(4); see also DOSH Compliance Manual Ch. 8.1, Table 2)
- Failure-to-abate: Up to $7,000 per day for each day the condition persists after the abatement date. (RCW 49.17.180(5))
Penalty calculation and the gravity method DOSH uses a gravity-based penalty calculation under WAC 296-900-14010. The inspector assigns a severity (1–3) and probability (1–3) score, multiplies them, and applies the result (gravity score: 1–9) to the applicable penalty table. Table 5 in WAC 296-900-14010 lists dollar values for each gravity score. For example, a gravity of 9 (highest severity and probability) currently results in a base penalty of $7,000 for a serious violation. Adjustments for willfulness, repeat offenses, and abatement lag are made per WAC 296-900-14020.
Adjustment factors and multipliers WAC 296-900-14015 describes required adjustments: employer size (reduction for fewer than 25 employees), history of previous violations, and "good faith" (measured, e.g., by presence and credibility of a written accident prevention program). Small employers may receive up to 70% off the base penalty (WAC 296-900-14015, Table 6).
CPI-linked increase 2026 Effective January 15, 2026, the gravity-based penalty tables in WAC 296-900-14010 will increase by 4.92% (2.92% from the annual CPI-U inflation update, plus an additional 2% step-up as part of DOSH's effort to align Washington penalties with the national average), per rulemaking under WSR 24-03-048 and DOSH bulletin Jan 16, 2026. Employers should use the new tables for violations cited on or after this date. Until then, the 2025 tables remain in effect.
Criminal penalties Willful violations causing death or knowingly false statements in required documents are gross misdemeanors under RCW 49.17.190. The court determines terms and fines within the gross misdemeanor framework under Washington law.
Sources for all cited facts: Source: RCW 49.17.180; RCW 49.17.190; WAC 296-900-14010; WAC 296-900-14015; WAC 296-900-14020; DOSH Compliance Manual, Ch. 8; DOSH penalty rulemaking updates
Washington routine injury and illness recordkeeping requirements (OSHA 300/300A/301) and exemptions
Washington employers subject to the Washington Industrial Safety and Health Act (WISHA) must keep detailed records of occupational injuries and illnesses, tracking all recordable events using OSHA Forms 300 (Log), 300A (Annual Summary), and 301 (Incident Report) as required by WAC 296-27-02101 and associated sections. These obligations extend to all employees on the payroll—including full-time, part-time, seasonal, executive, and labor—unless a regulatory exemption applies.
Who must keep records? WAC 296-27-00103 exempts employers with ten or fewer employees at all times during the previous calendar year, except if specifically directed otherwise by the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I), OSHA, or the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The headcount includes all individuals company-wide. Multi-establishment employers must maintain a separate log for each physical location, as specified in WAC 296-27-02101.
Low-hazard industry exemption Employers whose primary business activity falls under NAICS codes listed in Appendix A of WAC 296-27-00105 (partial exemption list) are not required to routinely keep injury and illness records unless directed otherwise by the agencies above. Only NAICS codes actually listed in the appendix are partially exempt; this list is directly in the WAC, not “updated periodically” unless rulemaking occurs.
Temporary and contract workers If the host employer supervises day-to-day work activities, that employer is responsible for recording injuries or illnesses on its own forms (WAC 296-27-02103), quoting: “You must record the injury and illness if you provide the day-to-day supervision of the employee’s work activities.”
Annual summary, certification, and posting At the close of each calendar year, employers must prepare an annual summary of entries from the OSHA 300 Log on Form 300A and “a company executive must certify that he or she has examined the log and that to the best of his or her knowledge the annual summary is correct and complete” (WAC 296-27-02105(2)). This summary must be posted in a conspicuous location from February 1 through April 30 of the following year for employee review. The regulation defines “company executive” to include the owner, officer, highest-ranking official, or immediate supervisor of the location (WAC 296-27-02105(3)).
Electronic submission rules WAC 296-27-071 requires certain employers to submit injury and illness data electronically to federal OSHA:
- Establishments with 250+ employees: annual OSHA 300A submission.
- Establishments with 20–249 employees in high-hazard industries (Appendix B): annual 300A submission.
- Some establishments with 100+ employees in listed NAICS codes must submit 300 and 301 data as of 2024 if notified by OSHA. The employer must use the legal name and EIN, and submissions must occur by March 2 of the following year, per WAC 296-27-071(2)-(5).
Obligations for exempt employers Even those exempt from routine recordkeeping (by size or NAICS partial exemption) must still report any fatality, inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or eye loss to L&I under WAC 296-27-031.
Source: WAC 296-27-02103; WAC 296-27-02105; WAC 296-27-00103; WAC 296-27-00105; WAC 296-27-071; WAC 296-27-031