What events need an incident report?
Report anything that caused harm or could have: injuries and illnesses, near misses, property damage, environmental releases, vehicle and equipment events, and security or violence events. When in doubt, write it up. A short report on a minor event is cheap, and a missing one is hard to rebuild later.
What should a workplace incident report include?
- Who: the person or people involved, their role, and any witnesses.
- When and where: date, time, shift and exact location, including the machine or task.
- What happened: a plain description in the order it happened, stating facts only.
- Harm or damage: the injury, first aid or treatment given, and any equipment or property affected.
- Immediate actions: how the area was made safe and who was told.
- Evidence: photos, sketches, the equipment tag or permit, and witness statements.
- Reporter and date: who wrote it and when.
Leave causes, blame and opinions out of the report. They belong in the incident investigation that follows. A blank form and a filled sample show the layout.
Who writes it, and when?
The person involved or the first supervisor on the scene writes it, ideally before the end of the same shift, while memory, photos and the scene are still fresh. A manager then reviews it, rates its severity and decides how deep the investigation goes.
When must an incident be reported to a regulator?
Serious events must also be notified outside the business, and the rules differ by country. In Australia, work health and safety law requires a notifiable incident, such as a death, a serious injury or illness, or a dangerous incident, to be notified to the regulator immediately, as set out by Safe Work Australia. In the US, OSHA sets its own deadlines for fatalities and serious injuries, and other countries have their own. Check the rules for your site.
What happens after the report?
The report starts the loop rather than ending it: triage and severity rating, an investigation proportionate to the potential harm, corrective actions with owners and due dates, a check that the fix worked, and feedback to the person who reported.