Part of a successful EHS strategy depends on capturing the right metrics, and then knowing how to use those metrics to improve your EHS operations.
TRIR (total recordable incident rate) measures how many OSHA-recordable injuries and illnesses occur per 100 full-time workers in a year. To calculate it, multiply your number of recordable cases by 200,000, then divide by total hours worked. A company with 4 recordable cases and 425,030 hours worked has a TRIR of 1.88. The 2024 U.S. private industry average was 2.3.
TRIR gives you direct insight into your company’s past safety performance. But your internal EHS department isn’t the only one interested in this particular metric.
If your TRIR scores are poor, it may lead to an uptick in surprise OSHA inspections and penalties. In addition, OSHA may increase their oversight in your company’s EHS programs.
Your insurance company may use TRIR data to determine your premiums. The higher your recordable incident rate, the more you could be paying for insurance.
Prospective employees may investigate your company’s safety performance, including TRIR scores. A high TRIR could signal a company’s lack of focus on employee safety and become a potential barrier to talent sourcing.
In addition, companies considering you as a vendor may be put off by a high TRIR score. They may see a business with a lower TRIR score as more favorable because it’s a testament to their safety record.
Given its impact across multiple channels of your business, it’s important you not only understand how to calculate your TRIR, but also how to keep this score as low as possible.
OSHA uses TRIR, among several other methods, to gauge a company’s safety performance. The resulting calculation reflects the number of recordable injuries per 100 full-time workers during a one-year period.
TRIR looks at the number of total recordable incidents and compares it to the number of total hours worked by all employees in a single year. In this case, a recordable incident is any work-related injury and illness that result in death, loss of consciousness, days away from work, restricted work activity, transfer to another job, or medical treatment beyond first aid.
Formula: TRIR = (Recordable cases × 200,000) ÷ Total hours worked
Example 1: Small Manufacturer. 50 employees work 100,000 hours in a year and record 3 cases. 3 × 200,000 ÷ 100,000 = 6.0. That is more than twice the 2024 manufacturing average of 2.7.
Example 2: Mid-Size Contractor. 250 employees work 500,000 hours and record 5 cases. 5 × 200,000 ÷ 500,000 = 2.0, slightly below the 2024 construction average of 2.2.