Chicago, West Pullman and Southern Railroad Company

Plain-English summary

OSHA cited Chicago, West Pullman and Southern Railroad for failing to comply with 30 safety and health standards at a Chicago workplace. The parties resolved all issues except whether federal railroad regulation exempted the company from OSHA jurisdiction. The Commission relied on earlier decisions holding that railroads did not receive an industry-wide exemption and affirmed the citation with a $240 penalty. The official release is internally inconsistent about the docket number: the Commission caption says 14471, while the attached judge decision says 114471. This file retains the index-assigned docket and slug, 114471, while preserving both captions verbatim below.

Decision snapshot

• Cited standard(s): The decision states that 30 standards were cited but does not identify them.
• Outcome: The citation was affirmed with a $240 penalty.
• Key point: Railroad regulation did not create an industry-wide exemption from OSHA jurisdiction.

Full text (OSHRC public release)


Document

UNITED STATES
OF
AMERICA

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

SECRETARY OF LABOR,

Complainant,

v.
OSHRC DOCKET NO. 14471

CHICAGO, WEST PULLMAN AND

SOUTHERN RAILROAD COMPANY

Respondent.

Before: BARNAKO, Chairman; MORAN and CLEARY, Commissioners.

BY THE COMMISSION: A decision of Review Commission Judge Paul L. Brady, dated

November 25, 1975, is before this Commission for review pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 661.

That decision is affirmed on the basis of the decisions by a divided Commission in

Secretary v. Seaboard Coast Line Railroad Co., OSHRC Docket No. 11904, December 1, 1975,

and Secretary v. Belt Railway Company of Chicago, 20 OSAHRC 568 (1975). Those decisions

are dispositive of the instant case.

Respondent, in its answer to the complaint, admitted the alleged violations and that due

consideration was given to the statutory criteria in 29 U.S.C. § 666(i) in determining the penalty

proposal. Respondent also stipulated that the exemption question was the only issue in contest.

Accordingly, the entire citation is affirmed and a penalty of $240 is assessed therefor.

FOR THE COMMISSION:

William S. McLaughlin

Executive Secretary

DATED: OCT 19, 1976

UNITED STATES
OF
AMERICA

OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH REVIEW COMMISSION

SECRETARY OF LABOR,

Complainant,

v.
OSHRC DOCKET NO. 114471

CHICAGO, WEST PULLMAN AND

SOUTHERN RAILROAD COMPANY

Respondent.

DECISION AND ORDER

BRADY, JUDGE: This proceeding is brought pursuant to section 10 of the Occupational

Safety and Health Act of 1970, 29 U.S.C. 651 et seq. 84 Stat. 1590 (hereinafter referred to as the

Act) to contest a citation issued by the Secretary of Labor (hereinafter referred to as the

Secretary) pursuant to section 9(a) of the Act. The citation alleges that as a result of an inspection

of respondent’s workplace located at Chicago, Illinois, respondent violated section 5(a) of the

Act by failing to comply with 30 occupational safety and health standards promulgated by the

Secretary pursuant to section 6 thereof. Notice of proposed penalty was issued with the citation.

A stipulation executed by the parties hereto resolves the issues in this proceeding except

whether respondent is subject to the jurisdiction of the Act, or is it exempt by reason of section

4(b)(1) thereof. In Secretary v. Southern Pacific Transportation Company, 13 OSAHRC 258

(1974) petitions for review docketed, numbers 74–3981 and 75–1091 (5th Cir.), the Commission

ruled that railroads are not entitled to an industry-wide exemption under section are not entitled

to an industrywide This ruling was recently upheld and extended in Secretary v. Belt Railway

Company of Chicago, et al, docket number 4616, et al, (October, 1975) 20 OSAHRC ——.

These decisions are binding in this case; and, accordingly, it is held that respondent is subject to

the jurisdiction of the Commission.

Therefore, it is ORDERED that:

(1) The notice of contest is hereby dismissed.

(2) The citation is hereby affirmed, and the proposed penalty in the sum of $240 is

assessed.

Dated this 25th day of November, 1975.

PAUL L. BRADY

Judge

Copies mailed certified to:

Herman Grant, Esquire

Regional Solicitor

U. S. Department of Labor

Federal Building

230 South Dearborn St., 8th Floor

Chicago, Illinois 60604

Thomas J. Duggan, State Legis. Dir.

United Transportation Union

330 S. Wells Street

Chicago, Illinois 60606

J. E. Rice, President & General Manager

Chicago West Pullman & Southern Railroad Company,

2728 East 104th Street

Chicago, Illinois 60617