OSHA is initiating a national emphasis program (NEP) on recordkeeping to assess the accuracy of injury and illness data recorded by employers. The recordkeeping NEP involves inspecting occupational injury and illness records prepared by businesses "and appropriately enforcing regulatory requirements when employers are found to be under-recording" incidents, according to the agency.

The inspections will include a records review, employee interviews, and a limited safety and health inspection of the workplace. OSHA says the NEP will focus on selected industries with high injury and illness rates.

At the request of congressional committees, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a study on the accuracy of employer injury and illness records.

OSHA says the recordkeeping emphasis program will help it work cooperatively with GAO. The initiative also complements Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) efforts to investigate factors accounting for differences between the number of workplace injuries and illnesses estimated by BLS and those estimated by other data sources.