Temporary worker injuries on a host company's OSHA log

NOTICE: This is an OSHA Archive Document, and may no longer represent OSHA Policy. It is presented here as historical content, for research and review purposes only.

July 2, 1992

Mr. Neil H. Wasser
Constangy, Brooks & Smith
[Recipient address omitted]
Dear Mr. Wasser:

Thank you for your letter of April 10 asking for a clarification of the OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping requirements for on-site employees of a temporary employment agency. After reviewing your description of the employment arrangement, it appears that the using firm in question is providing the day-to-day supervision and thus has the amount of control necessary for recording the work related injuries and illnesses for these workers. Based on the limited discussion of supervision in your letter it appears that the company is utilizing workers from a temporary help agency on an on-going basis to produce its product, or output.

The enclosed Recordkeeping Guidelines for Occupational Injuries and Illnesses discusses the employer relationship. On page 24 of the guidelines, Question A-2 addresses the use of workers from a temporary help service on a contract basis. The answer states that the records should be kept by the firm responsible for the day-to-day direction of the employees activities.

While the workers are accompanied by a supervisor and timekeeper from the temporary help agency who seem to generally oversee attendance, provide discipline, etc., the temporary workers are merged in with the company's permanent workforce on assembly lines. It appears that a company supervisor supervises the details, means, methods and processes by which the work objective is accomplished by the temporary workers. Although persistent or serious production problems and disciplinary problems are referred to the temporary agency supervisor, the company supervisor appears to be providing the detailed day-to-day supervision of the employees.

We have enclosed a copy of the Dayton Tire case (OSAHRC Docket No. 2719, January 29, 1975) upon which the Guideline interpretation on this subject is based. While the court mentions the non-supervisory factors your letter discusses in detail (and is mentioned in our Guidelines) the determining factor for recordability is the day-to-day supervision as discussed in the Guidelines.

If you wish to discuss these issues further or have any questions, please contact my staff at (202) 523-1463.

Sincerely,
Stephen A. Newell
Acting Director
Office of Statistics

Enclosures

[Requester letter reproduced on OSHA page; omitted here.]