E M E R G E N C Y T E M P O R A R Y S T A N D A R D 

The COVID-19 Log

OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requires employers to establish

and maintain a COVID-19 log to record COVID-19 cases in their workforce. This 

document explains those requirements and provides guidance for recording COVID-19 

cases on the COVID-19 log. 

OSHA’s ETS requires employers covered by the 

COVID-19 ETS that have more than 10 employees 

on the date the ETS is published in the Federal 

Register to establish and maintain a COVID-19 log

to record each instance identified by the employer 

in which an employee is COVID-19 positive, 

regardless of whether the instance is connected to 

exposure to COVID-19 at work (see 29 CFR 

1910.502 COVID-19 Healthcare Emergency 

Temporary Standard – paragraph (q)). The size 

exemption for employers with 10-or-fewer 

employees is based on the total number of 

employees in a firm, rather than the number of 

employees at a particular location or 

establishment. The count includes all full-time, 

part-time, temporary, and seasonal employees. 

The employer must maintain and update the 

COVID-19 log while the standard remains in effect.

The COVID-19 log is intended to assist the 

employer with tracking and evaluating instances of 

employees who are COVID-19 positive without 

regard to whether those employees were infected 

at work. Among other things, the tracking will help 

evaluate potential workplace exposure to other 

employees, and will assist the employer in 

following requirements for notifying employees 

who have been exposed to COVID-19 in the 

workplace and removing employees from the 

workplace when necessary. Entering information 

on the COVID-19 log about employees with nonwork-related COVID-19 illness also assists 

employers in tracking how and when the disease 

entered the workplace. The information entered 

on the log may assist an employer in determining 

whether the employer’s policies and procedures 

have been effective in the prevention of COVID-19 

in their workplace. 

The log must include each confirmed case of 

COVID-19 even if the employee was asymptomatic 

(did not feel sick) and even if the case was not 

caused by an exposure in the workplace. However, 

the COVID-19 log should not record incidences for 

employees who work exclusively from home and 

thus could not expose others in the workplace.

Employers must record the case on the COVID-19 

log within 24 hours of learning that the employee 

has a confirmed positive test for COVID-19 or has 

been diagnosed with COVID-19 by a licensed 

healthcare provider.

The COVID-19 log must include:

 the employee’s name;

 one form of contact information;

 occupation;

 the location where the employee worked;

 the date of the employee’s last day at the 

workplace;

 the date of a positive COVID-19 test or 

diagnosis; and

 the date the employee first had one or more 

COVID-19 symptoms (if any were experienced). 

The COVID-19 log must be maintained as though it is 

a confidential medical record and must not be 

disclosed except as required by OSHA’s ETS or other 

federal law. In addition, the COVID-19 log must be 

maintained and preserved while the ETS is in effect.

Employers are required to make their COVID-19 log

available to employees, employee representatives, 

and OSHA representatives, upon request, as follows:
By the end of the next business day after a request, 

employers are required to provide:

 a copy of their individual COVID-19 log entry to 

an employee listed on the log or to anyone 

that the employee gives written consent to;

 a version of the COVID-19 log that removes 

the names of employees, contact information, 

and occupation, and only includes, for each 

employee in the COVID-19 log, the location 

where the employee worked, the last day that 

the employee was at the workplace before 

removal, the date of that employee’s positive 

test for, or diagnosis of, COVID-19, and the 

date the employee first had one or more 

COVID-19 symptoms, if any were experienced, 

to any employees, their personal 

representatives, and their authorized 

representatives; and

 all information entered on the COVID-19 log to 

an OSHA representative.

Note that the ETS does not change the 

requirement to record injuries and illnesses under 

29 CFR part 1904. Employers that are required to 

keep OSHA injury and illness records under 29 CFR 

1904 must continue to record work-related 

confirmed cases of COVID-19 on their OSHA Forms 

300, 300A, and 301, or the equivalent forms, as 

required by 29 CFR 1904.4(a) (see Revised 

Enforcement Guidance for Recording Cases of 

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)).

This document is intended to provide information about the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard. The Occupational Safety and Health Act requires 

employers to comply with safety and health standards promulgated by OSHA or by a state with an OSHA-approved state plan. However, this document

is not itself a standard or regulation, and it creates no new legal obligations.

1-800-321-OSHA (6742) | TTY 1-877-889-5627 | www.osha.gov

OSHA 4130-06 2021
COVID-19 Log

The OSHA COVID-19 Healthcare Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) requires employers to keep a COVID-19 Log if they have more than 10 employees 

on June 21, 2021 (the effective date of the ETS) (See 29 CFR 1910.502(q)). Employers are required to record on the COVID-19 Log each instance of an 

employee being confirmed COVID-19 positive (i.e., case that tested positive or was diagnosed by a licensed healthcare provider), whether it was 

contracted at work or elsewhere. 

(Employers may use this form or any other form containing similar information)

Name of Business/Employer:

Address:

Name and Contact information of Employer’s Contact Person:

Employee Name 

and Occupation 

(Job Title)

Employee Contact 

Information 

(Address, Phone 

Number, or email 

address)

Employee Work 

Location (Address, 

Department, Floors, 

or Room Numbers)

Most Recent 

Day the 

Employee Was 

Present in the 

Workplace 

(Date)

Date of 

COVID-19 

Diagnosis or 

Positive Test 

for COVID-19

Date of Onset 

of Symptoms (If 

Applicable)

Brief Description or 

Additional Information