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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Florida Gas Contractors, Inc.
Three excavation violations affirmed
Florida Gas employees dug a trench beneath an adjacent concrete structure while installing a gas line. The Commission held that the structure was appurtenant to the sidewalk and that undermining it without support violated the standard without separate proof that collapse was likely. The Commission…
Pan Oceanic Engineering Co., Inc.
Willful trench violation affirmed and other items vacated
Pan Oceanic Engineering performed underground sewer repair work in Chicago. An employee entered an approximately 8-foot-10-inch trench without cave-in protection even though hydraulic shoring was beside the trench, and the company had five prior final citations involving the same cave-in protection…
Penney's Construction Company, LLC
Willful trench violations affirmed after work continued
Penney's Construction replaced a sewer line in a 10-foot-deep trench with vertical, fissured walls and no cave-in protection. Employees also encountered flowing sewage, possible atmospheric hazards, an edge-side spoil pile, unprotected use of a cut saw, and public traffic without high-visibility…
Rawson Contractors, Inc.
Undermined-pavement violation affirmed
Rawson Contractors allowed employees to work on and below pavement that had been undermined by a sewer excavation, with part of an excavator resting near the unsupported area. The judge held that the cited standard presumes a hazard when pavement is undermined without support or other protection…
Philadelphia Construction Equipment, Inc.
Default affirms excavation citations for $16,650
Philadelphia Construction Equipment failed to appear for its scheduled hearing on serious and willful construction citations. After an initial remand gave the company another opportunity, the ALJ rejected its explanation for arriving late and found no good cause to reinstate the case. The record…
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.