Investigations also increase awareness among management and workers of the importance of following established safety practices. The investigation should focus on identifying the direct and indirect causes of the incident. Indirect causes are the underlying factors (such as inadequate training) that lead to the direct or obvious cause of the incident. Investigations should never be used to assign blame. If an operator error caused the problem, it is crucial to understand what caused the operator error. Was it a lack of training? Were the operating procedures clear? Was the job design at fault?

The nature of the investigation will depend on actual or potential loss. All minor injuries and illnesses need to be reported, treated and investigated. Serious incidents require a more thorough investigation. These include incidents that resulted in or could have resulted in serious injuries, illnesses, and property damage or business interruption. A team that includes (at minimum) management, safety professional, supervisors, foremen and employees should conduct investigation of serious incidents.

An EMR is an insurance industry measure based on the client’s loss history for three years, not including the previous year, which is used as a modifier for rating purposes. A modification of 1.00 can be termed neutral. EMRs above one indicate a loss experience greater than the average for like companies. Each report of injury or illness counts against the 1.00. Is your worker’s compensation premium high? Wait until your EMR goes over 1.00. Frequency and Severity will hurt you!!!

Just a reminder, according to Utah Administrative Code R614-1-5.C.2- each employer shall within 8 hours of occurrence, notify Utah OSHA of any work related fatalities, of any disabling, serious, or significant injury and of an occupational disease incident. Failure to do so, most commonly is a $500.00 fine.