Once on the Web site, workers can file complaints by entering their name and telephone number, their employer’s name, and a description of the hazard and its location into information fields. It takes about ten minutes to complete and send the online form, OSHA estimates.

The form is automatically transmitted for follow-up to the appropriate OSHA field office. OSHA says all online complaints are investigated and many can be resolved informally, usually by phone or fax with the employer. Those not resolved are likely to result in an on-site inspection, according to the agency.

Employees worried about confidentiality should use either a home computer or a publicly accessible computer, such as found in local libraries, according to OSHA.