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. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0403): Unsupported S&S removal rejected
Greenbrier and the Secretary proposed settling six citations, including removal of the significant-and-substantial designation from a citation alleging an inoperable emergency stop switch on a feeder breaker. That change would also have reduced the proposed penalty from $1,593 to $302. The…
Bluewater Yachting Solutions, Inc.
Commission dismisses settled case
Bluewater Yachting Solutions and the Secretary of Labor notified the Commission that they had settled all contested citation items. The Commission dismissed the case under Commission Rule 100. The order does not identify the cited standards, settlement terms, or penalty amount.
Secretary of Labor v. County Line Stone Co., Inc., Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC, and Ramaco Resources, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. County Line Stone Co., Inc., Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC, and Ramaco Resources, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0260): Settlement vacaturs remained reviewable
These three consolidated cases involved settlements that proposed vacating contested citations while resolving other citations in the same agreements. The Secretary claimed unreviewable discretion to vacate the citations and declined to assure the ALJ that the proposed vacaturs were independent of…
Commercial Metals Company, d/b/a CMC Steel New Jersey
Mill lockout violations affirmed but willful classification rejected
Commercial Metals Company manufactured steel rebar at its Sayreville, New Jersey, facility. An assistant roller was adjusting a jack behind Mill Stand 7 when the machine unexpectedly energized, pulled him into its spindles, and killed him. The judge found that CMC's established lockout procedure…
Elmer W. Davis, Inc.
Hoist-area and ladder violations affirmed
An Elmer W. Davis crew was replacing roofs on a four-story municipal building in Newark, New York. One employee stepped through modular guardrails and stood near the roof edge without personal fall protection while signaling a crane operator, and three employees used a ladder that extended less…
Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials Northeast, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Heidelberg Materials Northeast, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2024-0057): Missing mine-map airflows violated ventilation rule
Heidelberg's annual ventilation map showed airflow for two mine openings but omitted the direction and quantity for two other openings carrying large ambient airflows. The judge rejected Heidelberg's argument that only mechanically generated flows in primary or secondary entries were principal air…
Secretary of Labor v. Tintic Consolidated Metals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Tintic Consolidated Metals, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2024-0067): Misdirected timely contest excused
MSHA proposed $67,007 in penalties against Tintic, and the assessment became final after MSHA did not receive a timely contest. Tintic had filed a contest within 30 days, but mistakenly sent it to the Commission instead of MSHA's Civil Penalty Compliance Office. The Commission majority treated that…
Secretary of Labor v. Lo Down Energy, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Lo Down Energy, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2024-0147): Repeated mail failures did not justify reopening
Lo Down Energy sought to reopen a final penalty assessment after a mailed copy intended for its representative was not received before the contest deadline. The operator did not confirm delivery and then failed to respond to its representative for a week after the problem was discovered. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Coyote Gravel Products, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Coyote Gravel Products, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2024-0139): Conclusory internal-error claim rejected
Coyote Gravel sought to reopen a final penalty assessment, saying its general manager neglected to submit completed contest paperwork because of an internal error. The Commission held that a reopening request must give a detailed explanation of the failure, including relevant dates, people, causes…
Secretary of Labor v. Western Refractory Construction, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Western Refractory Construction, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0191): First spam-filter failure excused
Western Refractory defaulted after its safety manager did not see the Secretary's penalty petition or the ALJ's show-cause order because the emails went to a spam folder. The Commission found no prior similar failure, no history of reopening motions, and no allegation of bad faith. It also noted…
Secretary of Labor v. Roger J. Rohloff, employed by Daanen & Janssen, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Roger J. Rohloff, employed by Daanen & Janssen, Inc. (FMSHRC LAKE 2024-0014): Unserved individual assessment held nonfinal
MSHA assessed an individual penalty against Roger Rohloff under section 110(c) after a rock-fall investigation. The certified mailing was returned unclaimed, even though an MSHA representative had agreed to send all correspondence for Rohloff to his counsel. Rohloff and his counsel learned of the…
Secretary of Labor v. Mike Morgan Industrial, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Mike Morgan Industrial, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0244): Unmonitored spam and unexplained delay barred reopening
Mike Morgan Industrial did not answer the Secretary's penalty petition because it contacted MSHA and waited for a response, even though the petition directed it to answer the Commission within 30 days. The company then missed the ALJ's show-cause order because the email went to a spam folder. It…
Secretary of Labor v Kevin Coleman, formerly employed by Carmeuse Lime
Secretary of Labor v Kevin Coleman, formerly employed by Carmeuse Lime (FMSHRC SE 2024-0135): Assessment sent to abandoned mine held nonfinal
MSHA proposed an individual penalty against former mine supervisor Kevin Coleman under section 110(c). MSHA had been told to send case materials to Coleman's counsel, but it mailed the assessment to a mine that was closed and listed as abandoned. The Postal Service returned the assessment, and MSHA…
Secretary of Labor v. Patton Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Patton Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2024-0004): Isolated failure to return contest form excused
Patton decided to contest four of nineteen violations and promptly paid the penalties for the other fifteen. Its service provider's safety director mistakenly failed to return the contest form to MSHA. Patton discovered the omission after receiving a delinquency notice, investigated immediately…
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0287): Fire, ventilation, monitoring, cable, and ground-control citations split
The case addressed citations arising from a loader fire, smoke crossing an evacuation route, an atmospheric monitoring outage, a failed high-voltage cable splice, and loose ground above a traveled area at Morton Salt's underground mine. The judge affirmed S&S citations for allowing the known…
Secretary of Labor v. Muhlenberg County Coal Resources, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Muhlenberg County Coal Resources, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2023-0084): Ignored certified-mail notices barred reopening
Muhlenberg claimed that a proposed assessment was misdelivered because no authorized recipient was available when certified mail arrived. Postal records showed that notices were left at the company's address twice. The Commission held that this was not a postal mistake because the assessment was…
Secretary of Labor v. Active Resources, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Active Resources, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2024-0035): Intentional payment based on legal misunderstanding barred reopening
Active Resources intentionally paid a citation while rehabilitating a nonproducing mine because it believed payment meant the citation had been abated. MSHA later issued a section 104(b) order for failure to abate, prompting Active to argue that it would have contested the assessment if it had…
Secretary of Labor v. Northshore Mining Company and Matthew Zimmer, Roger Peterson employed by Northshore Mining Company
Secretary of Labor v. Northshore Mining Company, et al. (FMSHRC LAKE 2017-0224): Flagrant walkway penalty increased on remand
An earlier judge found that Northshore failed to maintain elevated walkways, acted with reckless disregard and unwarrantable failure, and assessed a $60,000 penalty after rejecting MSHA's flagrant designation. The Commission affirmed, but the Eighth Circuit held that the violation was flagrant and…
Secretary of Labor v. Garcia Mining Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Garcia Mining Company, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2024-0023): Timely emailed contest made assessment nonfinal
Garcia emailed its penalty contest to MSHA's Civil Penalty Office two days after receiving the proposed assessment. MSHA did not docket the contest, and Garcia later received a delinquency notice. The company supplied email evidence of its timely filing and sought reopening after MSHA directed it…
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc.
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2022-0334): Paid penalties mooted stay request
An ALJ granted summary decision in a discrimination case and assessed civil penalties against Grimes Rock. The company asked the Commission to stay payment while the case was on appeal or allow it to place the money in an interest-bearing escrow account. After filing that request, Grimes paid the…
Preferred Roofing, LLC
Subcontractor fall citations vacated
Preferred Roofing hired Valor Roofing to reroof a home in Jacksonville, Florida. OSHA observed Valor employees working without fall protection and using a ladder whose rails did not extend three feet above the roof, then cited Preferred as the controlling employer under the multi-employer worksite…
Secretary of Labor v. GMS Mine Repair & Maintenance, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. GMS Mine Repair & Maintenance, Inc. (FMSHRC VA 2023-0021): Contractor held to mine block-light safeguard
A GMS miner drove a manbus past a red block light and caused a head-on underground rail collision that seriously injured miners. GMS argued that the mine-specific safeguard could not be enforced against it because MSHA had issued written notice to the production operator, not separately to GMS, and…
Secretary of Labor v. Georgetown Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Georgetown Sand & Gravel, Inc. (FMSHRC PENN 2024-0008): Reopening explanation deemed incomplete
A proposed assessment reached Georgetown's post office box on a Saturday, and the company retrieved it the following Monday. Georgetown filed its contest 30 days after retrieval, but MSHA treated the assessment as final based on the Saturday delivery date. The Commission majority held that the…
Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Stone, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Stone, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2024-0017): Uncorrected mail system barred reopening
Cooper Stone said it did not receive a proposed assessment because its mine office was in a high-crime area with mail problems. The company had identified those problems and proposed changing its address in 2021, but had not corrected the address when the assessment was delivered in 2023. Postal…
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc.
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2021-0178): Consequential damages denied on remand
On remand, the judge considered whether miner Alvaro Saldivar could recover consequential damages tied to delayed temporary-reinstatement payments. He held that such damages are available only after a proven section 105(c) discrimination violation, while the unappealed merits decision had found no…
Secretary of Labor v. ASGCO Manufacturing, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. ASGCO Manufacturing, Inc. (FMSHRC PENN 2024-0007): Paid penalty triggered show-cause order
ASGCO asked the Commission to reopen a final assessment involving one citation. The Secretary did not oppose reopening but reported that MSHA had received full payment of the penalty after the motion was filed. Because payment appeared to eliminate the dispute, the Commission did not decide the…
Secretary of Labor v. FCI Sand Operations, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. FCI Sand Operations, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2024-0018): Wrong-operator citations reassigned
FCI Sand moved to reopen after citations were issued to it for a time when another operator controlled the mine. It later asked to withdraw the motion because the citations had been transferred to the other operator. The Secretary confirmed that the citations were removed from FCI Sand's records…
Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Stone, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Cooper Stone, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0056): Ongoing negotiations did not excuse missed answer
Cooper Stone defaulted after failing to answer the Secretary's penalty petition and the ALJ's show-cause order. The company said it believed no answer was required while settlement negotiations with MSHA were continuing. The Commission noted that both filings explained the required procedure and…
Secretary of Labor v. Ram Enterprises, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Ram Enterprises, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0351): Timely contest made assessment nonfinal
Ram Enterprise sought to reopen three citations after receiving a delinquency notice for an assessment it believed was already in contest. The company contacted MSHA about the pending hearing and later moved to reopen. The Secretary confirmed that Ram Enterprise had timely contested the proposed…
Elite Builders, Inc.
Willful residential fall violation affirmed
Elite Builders' owner and four workers were framing the owner's two-story house in Gretna, Nebraska. OSHA found workers without eye protection, on an unsecured forklift-supported platform without fall protection, using an unguarded stairway, and framing on a roof without fall protection. The judge…
Secretary of Labor v. TIC - The Industrial Company
Secretary of Labor v. TIC - The Industrial Company (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0405): Assessment sent to old address held nonfinal
TIC updated its address of record with MSHA before the proposed assessment was issued. The change was not properly entered in MSHA's system, so the assessment was sent to the old address and returned as undeliverable. TIC discovered the delinquent penalty through MSHA's data system and requested a…
Secretary of Labor v. Robinson Nevada Mining Company
Secretary of Labor v. Robinson Nevada Mining Company (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0382): Unknown recipient signature justified reopening
Robinson Nevada said it never received a proposed assessment that postal records showed was signed for by “C SMITH” in Ely, Nevada. The company had no employee by that name and learned of the assessment only after receiving a delinquency notice. It contacted MSHA the next day and promptly sought…
Secretary of Labor v. Specialty Vermiculite, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Specialty Vermiculite, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2023-0232): Corrected delivery date confirmed timely contest
Specialty Vermiculite contested four citations on August 4, 2023. MSHA initially treated the filing as late because postal information listed the assessment as delivered on July 1. After reviewing the delivery record, MSHA corrected the receipt date to July 5, making the contest timely. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2021-0160): Unsupported S&S removal rejected
Knight Hawk and the Secretary proposed settling three citations by removing the significant-and-substantial designation from two and reducing total penalties from $7,960 to $4,590. The ALJ accepted the explanation for one removal but found inadequate support for removing S&S from a roof-control…
Secretary of Labor v. Crimson Oak Grove Resources, LLC and Secretary of Labor v. River City Stone-DIV/Mathy Construction Co. and Secretary of Labor v. Holcim (US) Inc. and Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Crimson Oak Grove Resources, LLC and consolidated cases (FMSHRC LAKE 2021-0145): Settlement citation vacaturs required Commission review
These five cases involved proposed settlements or dismissals in which the Secretary would vacate citations while operators accepted or withdrew contests to other citations and waived potential attorney-fee claims. The ALJ required either assurance that the vacaturs were independent of the other…
Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor v. Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc.
Cactus Canyon Quarries, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0045): Mine jurisdiction upheld and citations split
Cactus Canyon challenged MSHA's authority over its Fairland stone-processing plant and the related Clendennen Ranch quarry. The judge held that the plant performed milling and that both facilities were mines covered by the Mine Act. Of ten citations, he vacated four, affirmed three as issued, and…
Secretary of Labor obo Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC and Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Secretary of Labor obo Jason Hargis v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2021-0163): Injury reporting affirmed and discrimination dismissal sustained
Jason Hargis reported a back injury after handling crusher liner plates, was placed on light duty, and was terminated about a month later. The Commission affirmed that Vulcan violated the injury-reporting rule because Hargis could not perform all his duties and management knew his work had been…
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0120): Pattern notice itself held unreviewable
MSHA issued Morton Salt a pattern-of-violations notice after identifying 82 S&S citations in a 12-month period, including 45 involving loose-ground hazards. Morton Salt asked the Commission to review MSHA's decision-making process and mitigating-circumstances analysis behind the notice. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Tintic Consolidated Metals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Tintic Consolidated Metals, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0406): Personnel-change explanation deemed too cursory
Tintic missed the contest deadline for an $83,040 assessment while its chief operating officer was retiring, its safety superintendent changed positions, and a new general manager was appointed. The company discovered the delinquency when the new manager received a later assessment and promptly…
Cargill Incorporated v. Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor v. Cargill Deicing Technology
Cargill Incorporated v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC LAKE 2022-0285): Nitrogen dioxide escapeway citation vacated
MSHA cited Cargill after nitrogen dioxide in a return-air route used as the Cleveland salt mine's secondary escapeway measured above 5 parts per million. The judge held that the Secretary had not shown the measured gas levels made the route unsafe or untravelable under the escapeway standard. He…
Secretary of Labor obo Robert Baumann v. MOsenecaManufacturer LLC dba American Tripoli
Secretary of Labor obo Robert Baumann v. American Tripoli (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0251): Backpay stay denied during appeal
An ALJ found that American Tripoli discriminated against miner representative Robert Baumann and ordered $10,552 in backpay plus interest, along with civil penalties. The operator appealed and sought to stay the backpay award after MSHA warned that nonpayment could lead to enforcement action. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Mid-States Materials, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Mid-States Materials, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0250): Unexplained delays barred reopening with prejudice
Mid-States paid three penalties and emailed MSHA to contest seven others, but the email was sent 28 days after the assessment had already become final. The company did not explain why the contest was late. It also filed its reopening motion more than a month after the delinquency notice without…
MFA Enterprises Inc., dba West Central Agri Services
Willful railcar fall-protection violation affirmed
MFA Enterprises operated a grain-storage and railcar-loading facility in Adrian, Missouri. Employees regularly walked on top of railcars about 15 feet above the ground without using the installed fall-protection system, including an employee who was on a railcar when a grain-elevator explosion…
U.S. Postal Service
Repeat blocked-exit violation affirmed
After a roof collapse closed another New Jersey processing center, the Postal Service rerouted a large volume of packages to its Teterboro plant. OSHA found pallets, boxes, mail, and processing materials obstructing an exit route and found access to fire extinguishers obstructed during two…
Secretary of Labor v. GCC Dacotah, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. GCC Dacotah, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0229): Repeated email-address errors barred reopening
GCC Dacotah failed to file two penalty contests because employees typed MSHA's contest email address incorrectly. The same mistake had already caused another missed contest, after which the company said it circulated a preventive memorandum. The Commission found that GCC Dacotah made the same error…
Secretary of Labor v. CalPortland
Secretary of Labor v. CalPortland (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0240): Business-day deadline mistake excused
CalPortland misread the 30-day contest deadline as 30 business days. It filed its reopening motion on the thirtieth business day after receiving the assessment, which was 12 days after the assessment became final. The Commission found that timing consistent with the company's explanation and that…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Southeast Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Southeast Mining, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2024-0018): Mine-fire report ordered produced with redactions
After a fire at Peabody's Shoal Creek Mine, the Secretary sought the company's internal investigation report in discovery. The judge found that the report was prepared in anticipation of litigation and therefore qualified as work product. She nevertheless held that the Secretary had substantial…
Secretary of Labor v. C&C Leasing & Excavating, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. C&C Leasing & Excavating, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0536): Owner's hospitalization justified reopening
C&C's owner normally sent proposed assessments to a safety consultant for review. While the owner was repeatedly hospitalized because of illness, he failed to forward this assessment and the contest deadline passed. The company responded by designating another employee to handle assessments during…
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0072): Final penalties mooted order contests
Morton Salt timely contested four MSHA orders but did not separately contest the later proposed penalties tied to those orders. The penalties became final, and the Commission denied with prejudice a separate motion to reopen them. Morton Salt did not appeal that denial or respond to a later…
Secretary of Labor v. Saiia Construction Co., LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Saiia Construction Co., LLC (FMSHRC SE 2023-0002): Headlights alone did not safely illuminate quarry work
Saiia began quarry work before sunrise using only the lights mounted on its haul trucks and excavator. The judge credited testimony that those lights did not adequately reveal the dump edge, berm condition, haul-road turns, or people approaching equipment. He held that the conditions violated the…
KeHE Distributors, LLC
Forklift aisle-marking citation vacated
KeHE operated a large food-distribution warehouse in Romeoville, Illinois, where pedestrians and forklifts shared much of the work area. An employee walked into the side of a moving forklift in a palletizing area and suffered an injury requiring hospitalization. OSHA cited KeHE for failing to mark…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Twentymile Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Twentymile Mining, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2023-0363): Disability and untrained handoff excused
Peabody's safety manager, who normally processed assessments, was unexpectedly absent on short-term disability. The assessment went to an employee taking over compliance duties who had not been told that processing it was his responsibility and had not been trained. Peabody discovered the final…
Grimes Rock, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor v. Grimes Rock, Inc.
Grimes Rock, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC WEST 2022-0334): Enforcement citations and withdrawal order affirmed
Grimes Rock did not timely pay $12,533.94 in temporary economic reinstatement that an earlier judge had ordered for miner Alvaro Saldivar. MSHA cited the company, issued a section 104(b) withdrawal order when it failed to abate, and issued another citation when mine operations continued despite…
Secretary of Labor v. Brand Industrial Services, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Brand Industrial Services, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2024-0155): Five-day late contest excused
A Brand employee mistakenly routed the proposed assessment to the wrong department. Brand attempted to contest the assessment five days after the deadline and then promptly filed a reopening motion. The Secretary opposed relief and argued that the company had unreliable procedures. The Commission…
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc.
Secretary of Labor obo Alvaro Saldivar v. Grimes Rock, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2021-0178): Judge retained jurisdiction after premature appeal
The Commission had remanded Saldivar's discrimination case to the ALJ for additional findings. Before the ALJ ruled on remand, Grimes Rock appealed to the Ninth Circuit. The court dismissed the appeal because a Commission remand order is not a final agency decision and later returned jurisdiction…
Wesley Mallery v. El Segundo Coal Company, LLC
Wesley Mallery v. El Segundo Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2024-0106): Review granted on adverse action and dismissals
The Commission granted Wesley Mallery's request for review on whether the ALJ erred in finding no adverse action. A majority also directed review on whether the ALJ's show-cause orders and later dismissals were contrary to law because no dismissal or summary-decision motion had been filed. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Taishan Coal, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Taishan Coal, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0553): Vague process failures and unexplained delays barred reopening
Taishan Coal asked the Commission to reopen three final penalty assessments covering 18 citations and orders with proposed penalties totaling $78,622. The company said it failed to forward the assessments to its third-party safety consultant and that there were miscommunications about which…
Secretary of Labor v. Lopke Quarries, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Lopke Quarries, Inc. (FMSHRC SE 2023-0254): Misdirected filings and delay barred reopening
Lopke Quarries said it mailed contest forms with penalty payments to MSHA's payment center and later mistakenly sent its first reopening request to MSHA instead of the Commission. The company received delinquency notices in April and May and a scofflaw letter in July, but did not contact MSHA until…
C & S Technical Resources, Inc.
Forklift certification violation affirmed
C & S Technical Resources used a telehandler and a spotter to stack heavy cut steel transmission-pole segments on a flatbed trailer in Liverpool, New York. Two stacks collapsed during loading, and pole segments knocked the spotter from the trailer and killed him. OSHA alleged a General Duty Clause…
Secretary of Labor obo Robert Baumann v. MOSenecaManufacturer, LLC d/b/a American Tripoli
Secretary of Labor obo Robert Baumann v. American Tripoli (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0251): Operator's petition for review granted
The Commission granted American Tripoli's petition for discretionary review and combined it with a direction for review issued nine days earlier. It ordered the operator to file an opening brief addressing every issue raised in both review orders. The Secretary was directed to respond 30 days…
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.