Understanding and Calculating DART

Posted on 4/2/2013 by Roger Marks

Last month, OSHA issued letters to employers whose Days Away, Restricted and Transferred (DART) rates are above average for their industry sector. DART is a measurement of workplace injuries and illnesses that result in time away from work, restricted job roles, or permanent transfers to new positions. To calculate a company’s DART rate, OSHA uses data from the employer’s OSHA 300 logs, which are used to track recordable workplace injuries and illnesses during the year as required by 29 CFR 1904.

OSHA issued DART letters to about 9,400 employers this year. Due to the relatively high frequency of injuries and illnesses at their facilities, DART letter recipients are often targeted for inspection by OSHA. According to the letters that were sent, OSHA “may target up to 2,500 general industry workplaces identified in the survey for inspection in the next year” under its site-specific targeting (SST) program.

If you received one of these DART letters, you may want to prepare for a thorough health and safety inspection in the near future. This may include an in-depth review of your records to see that all plans, logs, procedures, and other documentation required by OSHA standards is in place and up to the standards’ expectations. In addition, you should make sure your employee training is up-to-date.

For a review of the four major stages of an OSHA inspection, see this week’s LionNews article, “What to Expect from an OSHA Inspection.”

How to Calculate a DART Rate:

Add the totals from Columns H and I of the OSHA 300 log ( total reportable injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work, job transfer, or restricted job duties).
Multiply this number by 200,000 (base hours worked for 100 full-time–equivalent employees).
Divide the result by the total number of hours worked by all employees (including management, temporary, and leased workers).

This year, OSHA adjusted the criteria used to determine which employers receive DART letters. In the past, an employer’s DART rate was compared to the national average of all employers included in the survey. For 2013, OSHA used DART data to compare facilities within a specific industry sector. OSHA believes this will result in a more meaningful comparison.

Insufficient training is one of the most commonly cited causes of preventable workplace injuries. Lion Technology offers both hazard-specific training and a comprehensive 10 Hour General Industry Online course to help your employees identify, avoid, control, and prevent workplace hazards.

An example of OSHA’s 2013 DART letter is available here.

Tags: osha

Find a Post

Search for:

Compliance Topics

Compliance Archives

Excellent job. Made what is very dry material interesting. Thoroughly explained all topics in easy-to-understand terms.

David Hertvik

Vice President

I will never go anywhere, but to Lion Technology.

Dawn Swofford

EHS Technician

The exercises in the DOT hazardous materials management course are especially helpful in evaluating your understanding of course information.

Morgan Bliss

Principal Industrial Hygienist

The instructor clearly enjoys his job and transmits that enthusiasm. He made a dry subject very interesting and fun.

Teresa Arellanes

EHS Manager

Lion provided an excellent introduction to environmental regulations, making the transition to a new career as an EHS specialist less daunting of a task. Drinking from a fire hose when the flow of water is lessened, is much more enjoyable!

Stephanie Weathers

SHE Specialist

Amazing instructor; real-life examples. Lion training gets better every year!

Frank Papandrea

Environmental Manager

These are the best classes I attend each year. I always take something away and implement improvements at my sites.

Kim Racine

EH&S Manager

I like Lion's workshops the best because they really dig into the information you need to have when you leave the workshop.

Tom Bush, Jr.

EHS Manager

Lion courses always set the bar for content, reference, and practical application. Membership and access to the experts is an added bonus.

John Brown, CSP

Director of Safety & Env Affairs

Lion does a great job summarizing and communicating complicated EH&S-related regulations.

Michele Irmen

Sr. Environmental Engineer

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

Some limited quantity reliefs are reserved for specific modes of transport. Use this guide to identify which reliefs you can capitalize on, and which do not apply to your operations.

Download

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.