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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Winesburg Builders, LLC
Defective lifting-sling violation affirmed
Winesburg used a visibly cut and frayed nylon sling, with its safety thread showing, to lift construction beams. The judge rejected the company's argument that the sling was not defective because later testing showed it could withstand a 6,000-pound load. A foreman must be able to identify…
Galluzzo Equipment & Excavating, Inc.
Most excavation violations affirmed
Galluzzo Equipment & Excavating installed a concrete catch basin and pipe in a street excavation in Lodi, New Jersey. The judge affirmed serious violations involving trench-safety training, the lack of a competent person, missing hard hats, an unsecured pneumatic-hose coupling, an unprotected spoil…
M. DeMatteo Construction Co.
Defective lanyard and rigging items vacated
OSHA found a lanyard with a broken latch, bent wire ropes, and a come-along with a defective latch at a multi-employer construction site. The judge vacated the fall-arrest item because the Secretary did not prove that M. DeMatteo controlled or used the lanyard. She found that the wire-rope bends…
Modern Continental Construction Company, Inc.
Rigging-training and suspended-load violations affirmed
At Boston's Big Dig, employees removed shoring through a small ceiling access hole. A vertically rigged bundle of seven-foot cross braces slipped and fell through the opening, impaling an employee in the head. The judge found that Modern had not adequately trained the crew for vertical lifts…
D.T. Construction Company, Inc.
Three willful trench violations affirmed, most other items upheld, $119,750 penalty
D.T. Construction is a Pennsylvania contractor that installs underground water and sewer lines. After OSHA inspected several of its dig sites in 1998, the agency issued three citations covering willful, serious, and other-than-serious violations. The heart of the case was three willful cave-in…
Brandenburg Industrial Services Company
Four demolition safety violations affirmed
Brandenburg Industrial Services Company performed demolition work at the Bethlehem Steel plant in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. OSHA cited an inadequately protected eight-foot excavation, an uncovered floor opening, a worn shackle, and excessively worn chain links on magnet excavators. The judge found…
Kiewit Atkinson Kenny
Mixed ruling on tunnel electrical hazards
Kiewit Atkinson Kenny was the general contractor for a tunnel construction project on Deer Island in Massachusetts. The judge held that Kiewit could be responsible for hazards created by its electrical subcontractor because Kiewit supervised the worksite and could obtain abatement. She affirmed…
LaForge & Budd Construction Co., Inc.
Two items affirmed by stipulation after remand
OSHA cited LaForge & Budd Construction Co., Inc. after inspecting an Oklahoma construction project. The Commission reversed an earlier ruling that had suppressed the inspection evidence and remanded the case for a hearing on the merits. The parties then stipulated that a nylon-sling item would be…
Mutual Erectors Inc.
Three safety violations affirmed for $2,300
Mutual Erectors was a small steel-erection contractor building the steel frame for a school addition. The ALJ vacated a general-industry sling-inspection item because the construction rigging standard more specifically covered the condition and the Secretary did not prove a missed inspection. She…
Blount International, LTD.
Storage and electrical items affirmed, crane item vacated
Blount International was the general contractor building an aircraft hangar at Westover Air Force Base. The Commission affirmed a material-storage item because heavy structural steel was stored on deteriorated supports in a way that could allow it to spread or tilt. It also affirmed two electrical…
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.