DART Rate Calculator
Calculate Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) Rate for OSHA compliance.
What is a DART Incident Rate?
The DART rate (Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred) is a safety metric used by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to track recordable injuries and illnesses that result in time away from work, restricted work activity, or a permanent job transfer.
Unlike the TRIR (Total Recordable Incident Rate), which counts all recordable incidents regardless of severity, the DART rate specifically focuses on incidents that are severe enough to impact an employee's ability to perform their standard job duties. This makes the DART rate a critical indicator of the severity of injuries occurring within an organization.
How to Calculate DART Rate
The DART rate calculation normalizes injury data across companies of different sizes. It is calculated using a standard formula established by OSHA.
The components of the formula are defined as follows:
- Total DART Incidents: The count of work-related injuries or illnesses that resulted in days away from work, restricted work activity, or job transfer.
- 200,000: This constant represents the equivalent of 100 full-time employees working 40 hours a week for 50 weeks a year. Using this constant allows for comparison between companies of varying workforce sizes.
- Total Hours Worked: The actual total number of hours worked by all employees during the reporting period (typically a calendar year). This excludes vacation, sick leave, and holidays.
Comparison: DART vs. TRIR
It is important to distinguish between DART and TRIR (Total Recordable Incident Rate):
- TRIR: Measures frequency of all recordable incidents (medical treatment beyond first aid).
- DART: Measures severity. It only counts incidents that actually keep an employee from doing their regular job.
Consequently, your DART rate will always be equal to or lower than your TRIR. If your DART rate is close to your TRIR, it indicates that most of your safety incidents are severe.
Why is the DART Rate Important?
Monitoring your DART rate is essential for several reasons:
- OSHA Inspections: High DART rates can trigger OSHA inspections or increase the scrutiny of your safety programs.
- Insurance Premiums: Workers' compensation providers use this data to assess risk. Lower rates often lead to lower premiums.
- Contract Bidding: Many clients, particularly in construction and manufacturing, require contractors to submit their DART rates during the bidding process. A high rate may disqualify a company from winning contracts.
- Safety Culture: A low DART rate indicates a safer work environment and effective return-to-work programs.
Example Calculation
Let's assume a manufacturing company has the following data for the year 2023:
- DART Incidents: 3 (Two employees had restricted duty, one had days away).
- Total Hours Worked: 450,000 hours.
Step 1: Multiply the incidents by the constant.
3 × 200,000 = 600,000
Step 2: Divide by the total hours worked.
600,000 ÷ 450,000 = 1.33
The company's DART rate is 1.33. This means that for every 100 full-time equivalent employees, 1.33 incidents resulted in lost time, restriction, or transfer.