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 obo Robert Baumann v. MOSenecaManufacturer LLC dba American Tripoli
Secretary of Labor obo Robert Baumann v. American Tripoli (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0251): Discrimination and interference violations proven
Robert Baumann served as a miners' representative and repeatedly raised safety concerns at American Tripoli's mill before the company terminated him. The judge found that his protected activity was the reason for the discharge and rejected the company's performance explanations as not credible. He…
Canyon Fuel Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Canyon Fuel Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC WEST 2024-0152): Expedited review of ventilation order denied
Canyon Fuel contested a section 104(d)(2) withdrawal order alleging that two converted mine seals lacked discharge pipes required by the approved ventilation plan. The company sought an expedited hearing, arguing that the plan language resulted from a mutual mistake and that prompt review would…
Mineral Manufacturing Corp. v. Secretary of Labor & Secretary of Labor v. Mineral Manufacturing Corp.
Mineral Manufacturing Corp. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC SE 2023-0191): MSHA has jurisdiction over the Eufaula Plant
Mineral Manufacturing argued that its Eufaula Plant made ceramics and belonged under OSHA jurisdiction rather than MSHA jurisdiction. The judge found that the plant milled kaolin clay by crushing, reducing particle size, kiln treating, and sizing the material before selling the resulting mullite…
Secretary of Labor v. American Tripoli
Secretary of Labor v. American Tripoli (FMSHRC CENT 2023-0196): Expedited silica-citation hearing granted
American Tripoli asked for expedited review of three silica-related citations and two withdrawal orders that stopped production at its mill. The citations alleged excessive respirable silica exposure, an inadequate respiratory-protection program, and a failure to conduct necessary dust surveys. The…
Cecil Matney, Jr. v. Rockwell Mining, LLC
Cecil Matney, Jr. v. Rockwell Mining (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0126): Part 90 complaint sustained
Cecil Matney developed black lung disease and exercised his Part 90 right to work in a lower-dust environment. The judge found that Rockwell Mining kept him as a move crew foreman whose required duties exposed him to excessive dust and changed his work conditions while dust sampling occurred…
Secretary of Labor obo James Louis Groves v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor obo James Louis Groves v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2023-0049): Default denied and late answer accepted
The Secretary sought default judgment after Consol Pennsylvania Coal did not answer a discrimination complaint by the deadline. Consol's original attorney stated under oath that the electronically sent complaint and related emails never reached his inbox, and new counsel filed an answer after…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0555): Eleven-citation settlement approved
The judge had previously denied a proposed settlement because the Secretary did not provide two section 104(b) withdrawal orders associated with citations in the docket. After the Commission's Perry County Resources decision held that a judge did not need the related withdrawal order when the…
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Justice Energy Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0148): Truck-safety settlement approved
The settlement covered five citations, including unsafe-condition and inadequate pre-operational-inspection violations involving two mine trucks. One truck had seven listed defects, and another had nineteen, while the related inspection records omitted most or all of those conditions. The parties…
Secretary of Labor v. Marshall County Coal Resources, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Marshall County Coal Resources (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0214): Three-citation settlement approved
The settlement resolved three citations involving a coal feeder whose emergency-stop cable did not work, debris obstructing track clearance in violation of a safeguard, and a missing preshift examination for the same area. The first two penalties were reduced by 43 percent without changing the…
Secretary of Labor v. Clay Trucking, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Clay Trucking (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0123): Coal-truck settlement approved with installment payments
The settlement resolved four citations involving two coal trucks with leaking brake components and defective lights, along with a broken fifth-wheel component on one truck. Three citations were affirmed at their original assessments. For one leaking-brake citation, the expected likelihood was…
Secretary of Labor v. John S. Lane & Son, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. John S. Lane & Son (FMSHRC YORK 2023-0051): Four-citation settlement approved
The settlement covered four citations at John S. Lane & Son's Westfield Quarry. A safe-access citation involving a miner climbing through and above a conveyor chute was reduced to low negligence and a $143 penalty. An unlocked-transformer citation was vacated, while a citation for mounting a…
Secretary of Labor v. Carmeuse Lime
Secretary of Labor v. Carmeuse Lime (FMSHRC SE 2022-0196): Person-in-charge citation affirmed; escapeway citation vacated
Three miners were working underground at Carmeuse Lime's Talona Mountain Mine while the designated person in charge was at a separately identified mine a few miles away and could not be reached by underground radio. The Judge affirmed the resulting citation under 30 C.F.R. § 57.18009 as significant…
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2022-0200): Eyewash and backup-alarm settlement approved
The settlement resolved two citations at Vulcan's 115 Quarry. For an expired four-ounce bottle of eyewash in a first-aid kit, negligence was reduced from moderate to low and the penalty from $133 to $50. For a nonfunctioning truck backup alarm, the expected injury was changed from reasonably likely…
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0166): Amended parking-brake settlement approved
A personnel carrier used to transport miners had a nonfunctioning parking brake, and MSHA cited the condition as reasonably likely, significant and substantial, and moderately negligent. The settlement changed the likelihood to unlikely, removed the S&S designation, and cut the proposed penalty…
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0166): Original parking-brake settlement decision superseded
This original decision approved a settlement concerning a personnel carrier with a nonfunctioning parking brake. The agreement changed the citation from reasonably likely and S&S to unlikely and non-S&S and reduced the proposed penalty from $1,069 to $535 based on the fact that the carrier's…
Secretary of Labor v. Maryland Energy Resources, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Maryland Energy Resources, LLC (FMSHRC YORK 2023-0024): Battery-charger settlement approved
MSHA found undersized electrical conductors serving battery chargers at Maryland Energy Resources' Casselman Mine, including melted receptacles and repeated replacements, and also found that required examination records for 14 chargers had not been kept for at least eight months. The two actions…
Secretary of Labor v. Twin State Mining, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Twin State Mining, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0051): Roof-bolter cable settlement approved
MSHA found two damaged places in a roof bolter's power cable, including one where bare inner wires were exposed, and noted that the mine had been cited under the same standard 26 times in two years. Twin State admitted the violation but asserted that the cable had been adequately taped until the…
Secretary of Labor v. Lehigh Cement Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Lehigh Cement Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0133): Twelve-citation settlement approved
The settlement resolved 12 citations at Lehigh Cement's Nazareth Plant I, including missing or damaged conveyor guards, extensive housekeeping hazards, and unsafe access beside a pond with a nine-foot drop. The agreement reduced several negligence and gravity findings, removed S&S from three…
Secretary of Labor v. Iron Cumberland, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Iron Cumberland, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2023-0007): Twenty-citation settlement approved
The settlement resolved 20 citations at Iron Cumberland's Cumberland Mine, reducing proposed penalties from $19,503 to $13,773. Several negligence findings were lowered, two citations were changed to unlikely and non-S&S, and other findings were modified or left unchanged. Judge Moran questioned…
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0036): Dozer-window settlement approved
MSHA issued two same-day citations after finding scratched and internally dirty windows on two Caterpillar D10R dozers working in the same coal-stockpile area. One citation, covering four deficient windows, remained at its $626 assessment; the other, covering five deficient windows, was reduced…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0129): Communications and track settlement approved
The settlement covered an emergency-communications citation and two track or travelway safeguard citations at Consol Pennsylvania Coal's Bailey Mine. The communications system lacked redundant tracking and communication along a 2,420-foot alternate escapeway and at a refuge location; its…
Secretary of Labor obo Ronald D. Collins v. Next Endeavor Ventures, LLC
Secretary of Labor obo Ronald D. Collins v. Next Endeavor Ventures, LLC (FMSHRC VA 2023-0023): Temporary reinstatement granted
Ronald Collins, a foreman at Next Endeavor Ventures' surface mine, raised concerns about accident reporting, preshift records, employee drug testing and credentials, miner training, and other safety requirements. He testified that supervisor Wilk Renfroe became angry when Collins insisted on…
Secretary of Labor v. Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Pocahontas Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0489): Roof-bolter dust settlement approved
One citation concerning a forklift wiring schematic remained unchanged at $133. A second citation found accumulated drill dust behind primary and secondary filters on a roof bolter, with dust visibly suspended during startup and operation and potential for silicosis or coal miners' pneumoconiosis…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0555): Settlement initially denied over missing withdrawal orders
The proposed settlement covered citations involving a CAT loader with nine defects and a CAT truck with nineteen defects, both under a standard requiring safety defects to be corrected before equipment use. Inspectors repeatedly extended abatement deadlines, and section 104(b) withdrawal orders…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0554): Haul-truck railing settlement approved
MSHA cited two hazards on the same haul truck at Appalachian Resource West Virginia’s Tug Fork Preparation Plant. One citation involved a loose railing at the top of an eight-to-nine-foot ladder, and the other involved the equipment operator’s failure to wear a seat belt. The settlement changed the…
Secretary of Labor v. Iron Cumberland, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Iron Cumberland, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0084): Combustible-accumulation settlement approved
The settlement covered two specially assessed section 104(d)(2) orders for extensive combustible-material accumulations along the Cumberland Mine’s 6 Mains West No. 1 belt. The first order identified ten locations, including material contacting moving rollers and one smoking accumulation; the…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0428): Blasting, training, and equipment settlement approved
This settlement resolved sixteen citations that had been moved from the related WEVA 2022-0301 docket. One equipment citation remained at $4,624 after ten defects were found on a haul truck and eight remained uncorrected thirteen days later, prompting a section 104(b) order. Three other citations…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0301): Equipment and ground-control settlement approved
The settlement resolved seventeen citations at Appalachian Resource West Virginia’s Grapevine South Surface Mine after sixteen other citations were moved to a separate docket. Seven equipment citations had led to section 104(b) failure-to-abate orders involving defects such as oil leaks, damaged…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0428): Failure-to-abate order disclosure certified
This reallocated docket included a haul-truck citation under 30 C.F.R. § 77.1606(c) for ten safety defects. The inspector granted additional time for repairs, but the record then showed that a section 104(b) failure-to-abate order had been issued. The Secretary sought settlement approval at the…
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Appalachian Resource West Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0301): Failure-to-abate disclosure question certified
The Secretary sought approval of a settlement covering numerous mobile-equipment citations but refused the Judge’s repeated requests for seven associated section 104(b) failure-to-abate orders. Counsel for Appalachian Resource West Virginia confirmed the orders and supplied information that the…
Secretary of Labor v. Covol Fuels No. 3 LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Covol Fuels No. 3 LLC (FMSHRC KENT 2022-0040): Massive roof-fall penalty reduction rejected
MSHA cited Covol Fuels after a roof collapse in the primary escapeway measured about 20 feet wide, 35 feet long, and 9 feet thick. The citation treated the event as having occurred, with fatal gravity and an S&S designation, and proposed a $3,546 penalty. The parties sought to change likelihood to…
Secretary of Labor v. Perry County Resources
Secretary of Labor v. Perry County Resources (FMSHRC KENT 2022-0024): Secretary ordered to disclose missing abatement order
Perry County Resources and the Secretary proposed resolving four citations with a total penalty reduction from $1,470 to $1,204. The record showed that MSHA had issued a section 104(b) failure-to-abate order connected to an admitted roof-support citation, but the order and related documents were…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2021-0019): Runaway rail cars showed safeguard violations
Six fully loaded supply cars separated from a brakeman car at Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company's Bailey Mine and traveled about 1,600 feet down a slope before crashing at the bottom. Two safeguards issued after a similar 2011 accident required properly maintained safety chains and couplers, along…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Tara Otten v. Continental Cement Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Tara Otten v. Continental Cement Company, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2021-0013): Walkaround representative awarded lost upgrade pay
Tara Otten was a laborer and miners' representative at Continental Cement's Hannibal Underground Mine. While she accompanied MSHA inspectors, the company paid her regular laborer rate instead of the higher mobile-equipment rate she would have received under its seniority practices if she had…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Juan Smitherman v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Juan Smitherman v. Warrior Met Coal Mining, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2021-0153 D): Retaliatory discharge finding requires reinstatement
Juan Smitherman was a senior roof bolter at Warrior Met's Mine No. 4, a mine subject to frequent methane spot inspections. He raised repeated safety concerns, including a complaint that roof bolting was about to occur without required ventilation controls, and asked to leave his supervisor's…
Secretary of Labor v. The Creator's Stone
Secretary of Labor v. The Creator's Stone (FMSHRC CENT 2020-0067): Small stone quarry held subject to Mine Act
The Creator's Stone removed layered stone from a small Arkansas site, broke and sorted pieces, stacked them on pallets, and sold the stone. The owner argued that the operation was a borrow pit rather than a mine and therefore did not need to notify MSHA or provide new-miner training. Judge William…
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Vulcan Construction Materials, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2019-0237): Air-brake valve citation vacated
MSHA cited Vulcan Construction Materials after an inspector heard and felt air escaping near a water truck's service relay valve at the Blairsville Quarry. The truck passed its braking test, and the inspector relied on the audible release while another person held the brake pedal. Vulcan's brake…
Secretary of Labor obo William R. Whitmore v. Yager Materials Corp.
Secretary of Labor obo William R. Whitmore v. Yager Materials Corp. (FMSHRC KENT 2020-0116 DM, KENT 2020-0117 DM): Safety manager temporarily reinstated
William Whitmore, Yager Materials' maintenance manager, alleged that he reported training problems, COVID-19 protocol concerns, a haul-truck near miss, and equipment safety defects. Yager suspended and fired him soon afterward, stating that he made inappropriate comments about extending a new…
Secretary of Labor obo William R. Whitmore v. Yager Materials Corp.
Secretary of Labor obo William R. Whitmore v. Yager Materials Corp. (FMSHRC KENT 2020-0116 DM, KENT 2020-0117 DM): Limited prehearing disclosure ordered
Before William Whitmore's temporary-reinstatement hearing, Yager Materials sought interview statements, management-witness materials, hearing exhibits, and documents used by MSHA's investigator. Judge William Moran held that fairness required the Secretary to provide Whitmore's own interview…
Secretary of Labor v. Gorham Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Gorham Sand & Gravel, Inc. (FMSHRC YORK 2020-0027, YORK 2020-0031): Defective summary request rejected
The parties wanted two quarterly-reporting citation cases decided without a hearing. Judge William Moran repeatedly instructed them to file a summary-decision motion containing supported material facts and legal authority as required by the procedural rule. The Labor Department attorney instead…
Secretary of Labor v. Gorham Sand & Gravel, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Gorham Sand & Gravel, Inc. (FMSHRC YORK 2020-0027, YORK 2020-0031): Proper summary motion required
The parties asked to resolve two citation cases through the summary-decision process instead of a live hearing. Their submission did not state supported undisputed facts, identify legal grounds for judgment, or otherwise satisfy the governing procedural rule. It also followed a missed deadline and…
Secretary of Labor obo Jason Ebert v. The Marshall County Coal Company
Secretary of Labor obo Jason Ebert v. The Marshall County Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2020-0133-DM): Temporary reinstatement ordered for alleged family retaliation
Jason Ebert alleged that Marshall County Coal forced him to resign two days after hiring him because management learned that his brother was a vocal safety advocate who had filed Mine Act discrimination complaints. The company initially requested a hearing on temporary reinstatement but withdrew…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2018-0169): Eleven safety citations affirmed with reduced penalties
MSHA issued 11 citations at Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company's Harvey Mine involving unsupported-roof warnings, damaged electrical and hoisting cables, equipment certification and mapping records, training documentation, noise exposure, and ventilation controls. Judge William B. Moran affirmed…
Secretary of Labor v. Carter Machinery Co., Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Carter Machinery Co., Inc. (FMSHRC VA 2017-0104): Competing summary motions denied over oil-accumulation facts
MSHA cited Carter Machinery for an alleged motor-oil accumulation near the turbo and alternator of a maintenance truck under 30 C.F.R. § 77.1104. Carter argued that the Secretary lacked evidence about the material, amount, temperatures, and fire hazard, while the Secretary's conference litigation…
Secretary of Labor v. Bundy Auger Mining, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Bundy Auger Mining, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-1036): Amended highwall settlement approved for $4,410
Bundy Auger Mining faced two section 104(d)(1) enforcement actions involving an unsafe highwall condition and inadequate working-area examinations. Judge William B. Moran had rejected an initial settlement that reduced both specially assessed penalties by 30 percent because its supporting…
Secretary of Labor v. Bundy Auger Mining, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Bundy Auger Mining, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-1036): Highwall settlement denied for missing factual support
Bundy Auger Mining faced two specially assessed section 104(d)(1) actions involving unsafe highwall ground and inadequate working-shift examinations. The parties proposed reducing each penalty by 30 percent, for a total settlement of $4,410 instead of $6,300. Their explanation said Bundy relied on…
Secretary of Labor v. Southwest Rock Products, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Southwest Rock Products, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2016-0001): Original release of the decision vacating the housekeeping citation
This is the original release of Judge William B. Moran's decision in the Southwest Rock Products housekeeping case, later reissued as an amended decision to fix a typo in the A.C. number. The company runs Portable #1, a two-person sand and gravel mine in Pinal County, Arizona. An MSHA inspector…
Secretary of Labor v. Southwest Rock Products, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Southwest Rock Products, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2016-0001): No housekeeping violation at a mine that had not started running that day
Southwest Rock Products runs Portable #1, a two-person sand and gravel mine in Pinal County, Arizona. An MSHA inspector arrived at 8:00 a.m. on July 7, 2015, before the plant started up, and at 8:50 a.m. cited the company under 30 C.F.R. § 56.20003(a), the housekeeping standard, for material built…
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.