What is a workplace incident?
An incident is an unplanned event at work that hurt someone or could have: a fatality, an injury, an illness or a close call.
What it means.
OSHA moved away from the word accident on purpose. Its incident investigation page explains that to many people accident suggests something random that could not have been prevented, and that because nearly all worksite fatalities, injuries and illnesses are preventable, OSHA suggests the term incident investigation.
Whether something happened and whether it must be recorded are different questions. An incident that meets the criteria in 29 CFR 1904 is a recordable case for the OSHA 300 log. Separately, 29 CFR 1904.39 requires reporting a fatality to OSHA within eight hours, and an in-patient hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye within twenty-four hours.
Since nearly all worksite fatalities, injuries, and illnesses are preventable, OSHA suggests using the term "incident" investigation.
Where it shows up on a job.
A slip on a loading dock, a hand cut while changing a blade, a pallet that falls where someone was standing a moment earlier. Each is investigated to find the cause that is still in the work.
Where this comes from.
Each source was read on 22 October 2026. Guidance is advice; a regulation is the rule.
- Incident InvestigationOccupational Safety and Health Administration. OSHA guidance, advisory. Why OSHA says incident rather than accident, and close calls.
- 29 CFR 1904.7Code of Federal Regulations, Title 29. Regulation. The general recording criteria.
- 29 CFR 1904.39Code of Federal Regulations, Title 29. Regulation. Reporting a fatality or severe injury to OSHA.
A plain-language definition, not legal advice. For a decision on your site, read the standard that applies to it.
Related terms
- near miss
A near miss is an event that could have hurt someone and did not, often by luck; OSHA also calls it a close call.
- recordable injury or illness
A recordable injury or illness is a work-related case serious enough, under OSHA's recordkeeping tests, that it must be entered on the OSHA 300 log.
- OSHA 300 log
The OSHA 300 log is the employer's record, for each year, of the work-related injuries and illnesses that OSHA's recordkeeping rule says must be recorded.
- corrective action
A corrective action is the specific fix assigned after a hazard, near miss or incident, with a person responsible, a due date and a check that it was actually done.
In PanoraIncident reports: One incident log for injuries, near misses, good catches and safety events, with photos.