10.1 OHS Act Section 24 Statutory Reporting Criteria and Timeframes
Key Takeaways
Section 24(1)(a) requires reporting where any person dies, becomes unconscious, loses a limb or part of a limb, or is likely to die, suffer a permanent defect or be unable to do their usual work for at least 14 days.
Section 24(1)(c) requires reporting, even without injury, where persons were endangered and a dangerous substance was spilled, a substance under pressure was released uncontrollably, machinery failed causing flying or falling objects, or machinery ran out of control.
General Administrative Regulation 8 requires a written report to the provincial director within 7 days on W.Cl.2 (or W.Cl.1 for disease), with immediate notification of deaths, unconsciousness, limb loss and injuries likely to cause death or a permanent defect.
GAR 9 requires an Annexure 1 record of reportable incidents and of any injury needing more than first aid, investigation within 7 days, committee review at its next meeting, and retention for 3 years.
Section 24(2) bars disturbing the scene of a death, likely death or limb loss without an inspector's consent, except to prevent a further incident, remove the injured or dead, or rescue persons.
1. The Statutory Framework
Section 24 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act requires certain incidents to be reported to an inspector. The General Administrative Regulations, 2013 (GAR) set out how:
- GAR 8 covers reporting to the provincial director: the form, the deadline and the immediate notification of serious cases.
- GAR 9 covers recording and investigating incidents internally, on Annexure 1.
Keep the two apart: an incident can be recordable without being reportable. CR 5(3) adds that where a fatality or permanent disabling injury occurs on a construction site, the client must ensure that the contractor gives the provincial director a Section 24 report under GAR 8 and 9 that includes the measures the contractor intends to implement.
Section 24 applies to incidents occurring at work, arising out of or in connection with the activities of persons at work, or in connection with the use of plant or machinery, in which any person is affected: employees, contractors' workers, visitors and members of the public.
2. What Must Be Reported (Section 24(1))
Section 24(1)(a) – people harmed. Any person:
- dies;
- becomes unconscious (for any length of time);
- suffers the loss of a limb or part of a limb (including part of a finger); or
- is otherwise injured or becomes ill to such a degree that they are likely to die, likely to suffer a permanent physical defect, or likely to be unable for at least 14 days either to work or to continue with the activity for which they were employed or are usually employed.
The 14-day test is about the likely inability to do the person's usual work, judged at the time. Moving an injured artisan to "light duty" does not avoid reporting if they cannot do their normal work for 14 days or more.
Section 24(1)(b) – a major incident. An occurrence of catastrophic proportions resulting from the use of plant or machinery or from activities at a workplace (as defined in Section 1).
Section 24(1)(c) – dangerous events without injury. The health or safety of any person was endangered and:
- (i) a dangerous substance was spilled;
- (ii) there was an uncontrolled release of a substance under pressure;
- (iii) machinery or any part of it fractured or failed, resulting in flying, falling or uncontrolled moving objects; or
- (iv) machinery ran out of control.
Construction examples of (c): a crane hoist rope parting and the load falling; a hydraulic line bursting on an excavator; a strike on a gas main releasing gas under pressure; a dump truck running away after brake failure. A trench or scaffold collapse with no injury is not listed as such; record and investigate it under GAR 9, and report it if it also falls within (b) or (c) (for example, if machinery failed and people were endangered).
Section 24(3) excludes traffic accidents on public roads, incidents in private households reported to the police, and aviation accidents investigated under the aviation legislation.
3. How and When to Report (GAR 8)
| Situation | Action | Deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Any Section 24 incident | Written report to the provincial director on form W.Cl.2 (accident) or W.Cl.1 (disease) | Within 7 days |
| Death, unconsciousness, loss of a limb or part of a limb, or injury or illness likely to cause death or a permanent physical defect | Additional notification by telephone, fax or similar means | Forthwith (immediately) |
| An injured person later dies | Notify the provincial director | Forthwith |
| Incident involving a person who is not an employee | Notify the provincial director with the prescribed particulars (who, where, when, how and why, and witnesses) | Forthwith |
The same W.Cl.2 form is also used for the COIDA claim (Section 10.2), but the two reports go to different authorities: the provincial director of the Department of Employment and Labour for Section 24, and the Compensation Fund or licensed insurer for compensation. Reporting to one does not satisfy the other.
4. Recording and Investigation (GAR 9)
- GAR 9(1): every employer or user must keep, in the form of Annexure 1, a record of every incident that must be reported under Section 24, and of every other incident in which a person needed medical treatment other than first aid. The record is kept at the workplace for at least three years and is open to inspectors.
- GAR 9(2): every recorded incident must be investigated within 7 days by the employer or a designated person (which may include a health and safety representative or committee member), and finalised as soon as reasonably practicable.
- GAR 9(3): the findings are entered on Annexure 1 when the investigation is complete.
- GAR 9(4): the health and safety committee must consider the records at its next meeting, and the employer must ensure that the necessary preventive actions are implemented and followed up.
Annexure 1 has three parts: recording of the incident (person, injury, expected disablement period), the investigation (investigator, description, suspected cause, recommendations), and the action taken by the employer.
5. Preserving the Scene (Section 24(2))
Section 24(2) provides that, in the event of an incident in which a person died, was injured to such an extent that they are likely to die, or suffered the loss of a limb or part of a limb, no person may disturb the site or remove any article or substance involved without the consent of an inspector. The only actions permitted without consent are those necessary:
- to prevent a further incident;
- to remove the injured or dead; or
- to rescue persons from danger.
Section 24(2) does not apply to incidents with lesser injuries or to no-injury events under Section 24(1)(c), but preserving evidence is still good investigation practice. Disturbing a protected scene is an offence under Section 38(1) (fine up to R50 000 or imprisonment up to one year, or both), and deliberately destroying evidence can also amount to the common-law crime of defeating or obstructing the course of justice.
6. Practical Classification
| Scenario | Reportable? | Basis | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Worker falls 1.8 m; fractured forearm; booked off 28 days | Yes | 24(1)(a): likely unable to work for 14 days or more | W.Cl.2 to provincial director within 7 days; Annexure 1; investigate within 7 days |
| Carpenter knocked unconscious for 45 seconds; discharged same day | Yes | 24(1)(a): unconsciousness | Report within 7 days; Annexure 1 |
| Tower crane rope parts; load falls into barricaded area; people nearby | Yes | 24(1)(c)(iii): machinery failure, falling object, persons endangered | Report within 7 days; investigate |
| Excavator ruptures a gas main; gas escapes under pressure; site evacuated | Yes | 24(1)(c)(ii): uncontrolled release under pressure | Report within 7 days; investigate |
| Labourer needs four sutures; back at full duty next day | No | Below 24(1)(a) thresholds | Record on Annexure 1 (medical treatment beyond first aid); investigate within 7 days |
| Welder loses the tip of an index finger | Yes | 24(1)(a): loss of part of a limb | Immediate notification; scene preserved under 24(2); written report within 7 days |
| Empty trench wall collapses during lunch; no one endangered | Not under 24(1)(c) as such | Not one of the listed events | Record as a near miss, investigate, review the excavation risk assessment |
| Artisan with fractured ankle does 21 days of office work | Yes | 24(1)(a): unable to do usual work for 14 days or more | Report within 7 days |
7. The CHSM's Incident Protocol
- Life safety: activate the emergency plan, get first aiders and emergency medical services to the casualty, and isolate secondary hazards (electricity, gas, unstable structures).
- Scene control: cordon the scene; where Section 24(2) applies, allow only rescue, removal of the injured or dead, and actions to prevent a further incident.
- Notifications: forthwith to the provincial director for deaths, unconsciousness, limb loss and injuries likely to cause death or permanent defect (GAR 8); also inform the client and its agent (CR 5(3)), senior management and the Section 16 appointees.
- Evidence: secure registers, task instructions, plant records and medical certificates; separate witnesses.
- Paperwork: W.Cl.2 to the provincial director within 7 days; Annexure 1 record; investigation started within 7 days; committee review at its next meeting (GAR 9).
A structural steel rigger working on a high-rise commercial project is struck on the shoulder by an unmoored perimeter beam. The rigger does not lose consciousness and sustains a displaced clavicle fracture. The treating orthopedic surgeon immobilizes the shoulder and books the employee off for 24 consecutive calendar days. To avoid triggering a statutory Department of Employment and Labour investigation, the construction manager reassigns the rigger to light sedentary duties in the site archive office on day 4. How must the Construction Health and Safety Manager classify this event under Section 24 of the OHS Act?
The incident is exempt from Section 24 statutory reporting because the employee returned to site within 3 days and the employer provided productive, paid light administrative employment.
The incident is classified as a Section 24 reportable event only if the compensation claim is formally rejected by the Federated Employers Mutual Assurance Company (FEM).
Report it to the provincial director within 7 days under Section 24(1)(a), because he will likely be unable to do his normal work for at least 14 days.
The incident only requires internal logging in the minor accident book because clavicle fractures do not involve the loss of a limb or permanent anatomical defect.
At 14:15 on a civil engineering site, a 45-tonne mobile crane engaged in tandem lifting suffers a catastrophic hydraulic boom cylinder failure. The telescopic boom buckles and crashes across the main site access haul road, crushing an empty light delivery vehicle. Fortunately, all personnel had cleared the lifting radius and no one suffered any physical injury. The site agent directs the earthmoving crew to immediately cut up the buckled boom with oxy-acetylene torches and clear the roadway to resume concrete deliveries. What are the precise statutory requirements governing this scenario under Section 24(1)(c) and Section 24(2) of the OHS Act?
The incident requires telephonic notification within 60 minutes, after which the failed hydraulic components may be discarded once photographs are filed.
Report under Section 24(1)(c)(iii) within 7 days; Section 24(2) does not strictly apply as no one died or was likely to die, but keep the failed parts.
The incident is a minor plant breakdown under Driven Machinery Regulation 18, to be reported only to the crane hire supplier and the plant maintenance manager.
Because no personnel were injured or killed, the incident is non-reportable to the Department, and the site agent may clear the road immediately.
During concrete pouring operations on the 4th-floor suspended slab of a commercial development, a 12-meter section of heavy falsework shoring suffers sudden structural lateral racking and collapses. Two concrete finishers fall 3.5 meters onto the slab below: Worker A sustains traumatic amputation of the left thumb and index finger, while Worker B is knocked unconscious for approximately two minutes before regaining coherence. What are the mandatory regulatory actions, notifications, and scene management protocols required of the CHS Manager?
Report the event exclusively to the Federated Employers Mutual Assurance Company (FEM) because both workers are covered under COIDA, exempting the project from Department of Employment and Labour oversight.
Notify the client's agent telephonically within 24 hours, permit the concrete subcontractor to clear the collapse zone, and record the event in the monthly health and safety committee minutes without notifying the DEL.
Notify the provincial director forthwith, freeze the scene under Section 24(2) until an inspector consents, and submit the written report within 7 days.
Submit Form WCL 2 within 14 days, remove the collapsed falsework timbers immediately to prevent concrete curing around the equipment, and interview Worker B only after 7 days have elapsed.
Sections you finish are checked off in the contents.