How do you calculate near-miss rate?

Multiply near-miss events by 200,000 and divide by total hours worked. With 18 events over 500,000 hours: 18 × 200,000 ÷ 500,000 = 7.2 per 100 workers.

Why is 200,000 used in the formula?

It represents 100 full-time workers each working 2,000 hours a year (100 × 2,000). Using it lets you compare a 50-person shop and a 5,000-person plant on the same per-100-worker basis.

Is a high near-miss rate good or bad?

Often good. Because near misses are close calls, not injuries, a higher reporting rate usually reflects an engaged workforce catching hazards early — the plants that report the most near misses frequently have the fewest recordable injuries.

What is a good near-miss rate?

There's no OSHA target, but many mature programs aim for a near-miss-to-recordable ratio of at least 10:1. A rate like 7.2 per 100 workers is a starting benchmark; watch its trend more than its absolute value.

How many full-time equivalents do 500,000 hours represent?

Dividing 500,000 by 2,000 hours per FTE gives 250 full-time equivalents — the effective headcount the rate is spread across in the example.

How is near-miss rate different from TRIR?

They share the 200,000-hour base, but TRIR counts recordable injuries (a lagging indicator) while near-miss rate counts close calls that didn't cause harm (a leading indicator you use to prevent the injuries TRIR measures).

Safety & Workforce calculator

Near Miss Rate Calculator

The Near Miss Rate normalizes how many close calls your workforce reports against hours actually worked, using the same 200,000-hour base as OSHA's TRIR so you can benchmark across sites of different sizes. Safety managers and EHS directors track it because a healthy near-miss rate is a leading indicator — plants that surface many near misses tend to have fewer actual injuries, since problems get caught before someone gets hurt. Counterintuitively, a rising rate often signals a stronger reporting culture, not a more dangerous plant. It answers 'are our people speaking up about hazards?' in a number you can trend and compare.

What this calculator does

Calculate the near-miss reporting rate for Safety & Workforce on the OSHA 200,000-hour basis.
Use it to track leading-indicator safety reporting in Safety & Workforce.
It computes near-miss reports per 100 full-time-equivalent workers by scaling reports against hours worked using the 200,000-hour standard base.

Formula used

Near-miss rate = near misses × 200,000 ÷ total hours worked
200,000 = 100 full-time workers × 2,000 hours per year

Inputs explained

Reported near-miss events:
Total employee hours worked:

How to use the result

Use it monthly or quarterly to trend reporting culture and benchmark sites, and alongside your recordable injury rate as a leading indicator.
A low rate can mean either a genuinely safe operation or a broken reporting culture where people don't bother logging close calls — read it with context, not in isolation.

Current U.S. benchmarks

Manufacturing hourly earnings average $30.27 (BLS, Jun 2026), up 4.4% from a year earlier. Median machinist pay is $28.24/hr (OEWS 2025), with state medians on each state page. Manufacturers have 529k open positions nationally (BLS JOLTS).

Common questions

How do you calculate near-miss rate? Multiply near-miss events by 200,000 and divide by total hours worked. With 18 events over 500,000 hours: 18 × 200,000 ÷ 500,000 = 7.2 per 100 workers.
Why is 200,000 used in the formula? It represents 100 full-time workers each working 2,000 hours a year (100 × 2,000). Using it lets you compare a 50-person shop and a 5,000-person plant on the same per-100-worker basis.
Is a high near-miss rate good or bad? Often good. Because near misses are close calls, not injuries, a higher reporting rate usually reflects an engaged workforce catching hazards early — the plants that report the most near misses frequently have the fewest recordable injuries.
What is a good near-miss rate? There's no OSHA target, but many mature programs aim for a near-miss-to-recordable ratio of at least 10:1. A rate like 7.2 per 100 workers is a starting benchmark; watch its trend more than its absolute value.
How many full-time equivalents do 500,000 hours represent? Dividing 500,000 by 2,000 hours per FTE gives 250 full-time equivalents — the effective headcount the rate is spread across in the example.

Last reviewed 2026-05-12.