Federal agency decisions, searchable in plain English.
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC) and mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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Secretary of Labor v. Harrison County Coal Resources, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Harrison County Coal Resources, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2024-0205): Three coal-mine citations upheld with one negligence reduction
MSHA cited Harrison County Coal Resources for an inadequately guarded shuttle-car cable reel, travel under unsupported roof, and a hole in a permanent ventilation stopping. The Judge found that gaps in a makeshift rubber cover could allow contact with the moving chain and spool, even though an…
Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2023-0182): Methane, reporting, and accident-scene citations upheld
Warrior Met contested three citations involving a miscalibrated methane monitor and its response to an elevator accident caused by falling ice. The Judge found the monitor violation significant and substantial because the mine liberates large amounts of methane and the inaccurate reading could…
Wanda Palo v. United States Steel Corporation
Wanda Palo v. United States Steel Corporation (FMSHRC LAKE 2023-0202-DM): Discrimination complaint dismissed before Commission reversal
Wanda Palo alleged that U.S. Steel discriminated against her by disciplining and firing her after she reported that a coworker had struck her and caused an injury. The Judge found that her reports of the incident and injury were protected activity. He nevertheless concluded that Palo had not shown…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Paul Kirk v. CEMEX Construction Materials Florida, LLC
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Paul Kirk v. CEMEX Construction Materials Florida, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2023-0007): Discipline for kiln-dust complaint found discriminatory
Paul Kirk, an electrician and union president at CEMEX's cement plant, raised concerns about hot dust escaping from a kiln and interrupted a management meeting when he believed the problem had not been addressed. MSHA inspected after an anonymous complaint and cited the plant for kiln conditions…
Secretary of Labor v. W.G. Yates & Son’s Construction Company
Secretary of Labor v. W.G. Yates & Son’s Construction Company (FMSHRC SE 2023-0094): Hot-work fire citation affirmed before Commission review
W.G. Yates was cutting steel in a phosphate mine building when hot slag entered an uncovered drain and ignited rubber lining inside a discharge pipe. The fire burned for about 17 minutes, produced thick black smoke, and resisted six fire extinguishers before the mine's emergency team put it out…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Michael Cook v. Panther Creek Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Michael Cook v. Panther Creek Mining, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0337): Part 90 miner awarded lost pay
Michael Cook exercised his Part 90 right to transfer away from excessive coal-dust exposure, moving from a ten-hour continuous-miner-operator schedule to an eight-hour mine-examiner schedule. Panther Creek kept his hourly wage unchanged, but Cook worked 13 fewer hours and lost $761.67 before a…
Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials Southwest Aggregates, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials Southwest Aggregates (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0165): Cross-motions denied over disputed slurry-line facts
MSHA cited Heidelberg Materials after hot water and steam escaped from a clogged slurry line while four miners were working to clear it, injuring them. The citation alleged that the company violated 30 C.F.R. § 56.14105 by failing to block the hot water or steam against hazardous motion. Heidelberg…
IMI Aggregates, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
IMI Aggregates v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC LAKE 2023-0249): Expedited hearing request denied
MSHA cited IMI Aggregates for failing to provide nonconductive material at an emergency-stop switch for a conveyor. IMI sought an expedited hearing, arguing that similar citations at 21 other mines could require costly electrical work, shutdowns, and lost production. The judge found those concerns…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0011): Escapeway obstruction citation affirmed
Six pressurized hoses from a pump car protruded into the secondary escapeway at Consol's Enlow Fork Mine. The judge found that the hoses narrowed and obstructed the path used with the escapeway lifeline and could impede miners, including a disabled miner on a stretcher, during an emergency…
Secretary of Labor obo Paul Kirk v. Cemex Construction Materials Florida, LLC
Secretary of Labor obo Paul Kirk v. CEMEX Construction Materials Florida, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2023-0007): Summary decision denied
CEMEX sought summary decision against claims that it disciplined Paul Kirk after he raised concerns about hot dust escaping from a kiln and after MSHA received related complaints. The Judge found genuine disputes over the kiln's condition, what management did and communicated about shutting it…
David A. Rose Farm & Ag Services et al v. Secretary of Labor
David A. Rose Farm & Ag Services et al. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC SE 2023-0159): Expedition denied and contests consolidated
David A. Rose Farm & Ag Services and Garcia Mining contested one miner-training order and six citations issued during work they described as river widening and dredging outside MSHA jurisdiction. They requested an expedited hearing based on financial costs, disruption, continuing inspections, and…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Mining Company, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0035): High-negligence amendment allowed
After the parties settled all but one citation, the Secretary sought to amend the remaining rib-control citation from moderate to high negligence. The citation described four large broken or loose ribs in areas where miners regularly worked and traveled, and the Secretary relied on seven recent…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0009): Booster-pump guarding citation affirmed
A guard over the Bailey Mine's 960 Booster Pump left a gap near a jagged, keyed shaft approximately 20 inches in diameter that rotated 300 to 900 times per minute. A contract greaser had to climb onto the pump frame and work about five inches from the shaft amid grease and spraying water. Consol…
Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor
Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0068): Mine-ID petition dismissed for lack of jurisdiction
Cactus Canyon asked the Commission to compel MSHA to issue identification numbers for ten intermittent surface mines, framing its filing as a contest proceeding. The Judge held that Commission contest jurisdiction is limited to specified citations, orders, penalty assessments, abatement periods…
Haskell Addington v. XMV, Inc. and Debra Vaughan
Haskell Addington v. XMV, Inc. and Debra Vaughan (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0114-D): Part 90 discrimination complaint dismissed on undisputed timeline
XMV miner Haskell Addington had complicated pneumoconiosis and later applied for Part 90 status. He alleged that XMV and human resources manager Debra Vaughan discriminated, retaliated, and interfered by cutting his pay and hours, assigning dusty work, withholding information about Part 90…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2021-0047): Unguarded belt drive citation affirmed as S&S
CONSOL Pennsylvania Coal Company operates the Harvey Mine, an underground coal mine in Pennsylvania. MSHA cited the company after an inspector found that a moving belt drive roller beside a narrow wooden walkway had no guard in front of it. Judge Alan G. Paez found that miners could use the walkway…
What these documents are
- Commission decisions: Rulings by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission itself, the highest level of agency review. These are citable as Commission precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by OSHRC Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j): it binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent in other cases.
- Why finality matters: Every page here says which kind of decision you are reading, so you know whether it is precedent you can cite or a final order that only shows how one judge ruled on one set of facts.
- Where they come from: Every page links the official OSHRC public release, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.