Is a heat illness OSHA recordable?

It depends. OSHA says some employers have failed to put heat-related illness on their injury/illness logs as required. Be sure to consider whether a heat-related illness is recordable under 29 CFR 1904. According to OSHA:

• If a worker requires medical treatment beyond first aid, the worker’s illness or injury must be recorded.
• If a worker merely requires first aid treatment for the worker’s condition, the employer is not required to record the condition.

For example, if a worker becomes unconscious or needs the use of oxygen, the worker’s condition must be recorded. However, if a worker is only instructed to drink fluids for relief of heat stress, the worker’s condition is not recordable.