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The OSHA 300 log for hotels

A room attendant hurt her back turning a mattress. Does it go on the OSHA 300 log? Here's who has to keep the log, what counts as recordable, every 2027 deadline, and why most restaurants don't need one.

For hotel general managers, HR & restaurant owners · 6 min read

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Who has to keep an OSHA 300 log

Everyone reports severe injuries. Exempt or not, a work-related death must be reported to OSHA within 8 hours, and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours: 1-800-321-6742 or osha.gov.

  1. 1Hotels and motels.With more than 10 employees: keep the log.
  2. 2Asked in writing.Any business OSHA or the Bureau of Labor Statistics asks in writing.
  3. 3Restaurants and bars.Full-service, limited-service and bars are partially exempt: no routine log.
  4. 410 or fewer.Any business with 10 or fewer employees all last year: no log.

States with their own safety plan (California, for example) can have different rules. Check yours.

What counts as recordable

A work-related injury or illness goes on the log if it led to any one of these:

  1. 1Death.Also report to OSHA within 8 hours.
  2. 2Days away.Missed work after the day of the injury.
  3. 3Restricted work.Light duty, a shorter shift, or moved to another job.
  4. 4Medical treatment.Anything beyond first aid: stitches, prescription drugs.
  5. 5Passed out.Loss of consciousness, for any length of time.
  6. 6Serious diagnosis.A broken or cracked bone, a punctured eardrum.

Not recordable (first aid): cleaning a cut, a bandage or Band-Aid, an elastic wrap. A line cook's small burn treated with a bandage stays off the log. The room attendant on light duty for five days goes on it.

Deadlines for 2026 records

  1. 1Within 7 days.Enter each recordable case on the 300 log and a 301 incident report, in calendar days from when you learn about it.
  2. 2Feb 1 – Apr 30, 2027.Post the 300A summary where staff notices go. Post it even with zero cases.
  3. 3By March 2, 2027.Hotels with 20 or more employees at the location submit the 300A online (OSHA Injury Tracking Application). 100 or more: also the 300 and 301.
  4. 45 years.Keep the 300, 300A and 301 after the end of the year they cover.

The 300A must be signed by a company executive. At a hotel, the general manager counts as the highest-ranking official on site.

Example log entry

OSHA 300 log · Case 3

EXAMPLE · NOT A REAL EMPLOYEE

Employee:
Ana L., Room Attendant
Date of injury:
Oct 14
Where:
3rd floor, room 312
What happened:
Lower back strain while turning a mattress
Outcome:
Job transfer or restriction (light duty)
Days:
0 away · 5 restricted
Type:
Injury

Mistakes hotels make

  • Logging first-aid cases, which inflates your injury rate.
  • Missing the 7-day window because nobody wrote it down that day.
  • Not posting the 300A because "we had no injuries".
  • Writing the name on privacy cases (sexual assault, mental illness, HIV and others): write "privacy case" and keep the names on a separate confidential list.
  • Forgetting to update days away or restricted once the employee is back.
  • Throwing out old logs before 5 years.

Your log fills itself

In the hotel edition of very cool report, a manager speaks the injury on their phone. Sealing the report opens the OSHA case, shows what's still needed within 7 and 30 days, and keeps your 300 log and 300A summary up to date, ready to print on February 1.

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Questions managers ask

Usually not. Full-service restaurants, limited-service eating places and bars are partially exempt from keeping the log. They still have to report a death within 8 hours and a hospitalization, amputation or eye loss within 24 hours, and keep the log if OSHA or the BLS asks in writing.

Not legal advice. Based on 29 CFR Part 1904 (federal OSHA). State plans may differ.