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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Grismer Tire Co.
Three serious items vacated after fatal backhoe accident
A tire technician died while changing rear tires on a backhoe, but no one witnessed the accident and emergency crews disturbed the scene before OSHA's investigation. The judge found that Grismer gave the technician adequate tire-service training. The Secretary also failed to prove that the ground…
J and M Miller Construction, LLC
Worker-status defense rejected and $13,800 assessed
OSHA cited J and M Miller Construction after two residential construction inspections found unprotected roof work, inadequate fall-hazard training, missing eye protection, and a narrow scaffold platform. The judge found that the workers were employees, not independent contractors, because the…
PM Construction & Rehab, L.P., a Subsidiary of Inland Pipe Rehabilitation, LLC
Manhole safety citations and $14,700 vacated
A pipe-replacement crew member suffered a fatal injury after entering a manhole against instructions, but the record did not establish the accident's cause. The judge found that the Secretary did not prove other workers were exposed to the manhole edge and that the worker inside used a fall-arrest…
3 Dimension Construction Management, Inc.
General contractor held responsible for asbestos demolition controls
3 Dimension Construction Management served as general contractor for converting a building into a self-storage facility and hired KIPI to perform interior demolition before asbestos abatement. OSHA cited the company for failing to ensure that the demolition contractor complied with the asbestos…
Thomas G. Gallagher, Inc.
Crane rigging violations affirmed with reduced penalties
A pipefitter suffered a serious hand injury when a weld broke during a crane lift of a 5,000-pound pipe assembly. The load was improperly rigged, and the employee placed his hand directly on the suspended assembly. The judge found constructive knowledge because Gallagher had not adequately…
Prestige Roofing, Inc.
Late contest dismissed and $2,000 citation affirmed
Prestige Roofing received a serious citation but did not file a written notice of contest within 15 working days. Its formal contest arrived almost a year after the citation, and the company did not respond to repeated orders inviting evidence for relief. The judge found no deception by OSHA…
Central Florida Equipment Rentals, Inc.
Unsafe berm operation affirmed after dump-truck fatality
Central Florida used a 25-ton articulated dump truck to carry fill along a narrow berm beside a retention pond. The truck fell into the pond and its operator died. The Commission found that the company did not accurately determine the truck's clearance or whether the berm could support its loaded…
Horst Construction dba Horst Group, Inc.
EAJA fee request denied after citation withdrawal
The Secretary withdrew a serious fall-protection citation against Horst Construction, making the company the prevailing party for Equal Access to Justice Act purposes. Horst then sought $484.10 in fees. The judge found OSHA was substantially justified because the superintendent was near…
All Erection and Crane Rental Corp.
Crane wire-rope citations and $21,000 vacated
A crawler crane's boom-hoist wire rope broke, causing the boom to collapse and killing two workers. All Erection owned the crane but had leased it without an operating crew to Beaver Excavating, which employed the operators and controlled routine inspection, maintenance, and lubrication. The judge…
Flintlock Construction Services LLC
Willful scaffold violations and $249,920 affirmed
OSHA found workers using inadequately planked, braced, accessed, and guarded scaffolds at a hotel construction project. Flintlock controlled the worksite and had authority to stop work, but its managers repeatedly ignored documented scaffold warnings from the onsite safety manager. The judge found…
Tower Maintenance Corp.
Alternative training violations remanded for clarification
OSHA cited Tower Maintenance after a fatal accident during painting work on an electrical transmission tower. For one training item, the Secretary pleaded power-transmission standards and general PPE and electrical standards in the alternative, but the pleadings and later briefs reversed which set…
Action Electric Company
Divided Commission leaves lockout citation vacated
An Action Electric apprentice was fatally struck by a steel mill cooling-bed counterweight before the facility's lockout process was complete. The judge vacated the group lockout citation after finding the cited rule did not apply to the fan-replacement work. The two Commission members disagreed on…
James Rutledge d/b/a Rutledge Roofing
Inadequate roof safety monitor draws $2,000 penalty
Rutledge Roofing used no guardrails, nets, or personal fall-arrest systems while two people installed metal roofing more than eight feet above hard surfaces. The owner claimed he served as a safety monitor, but he performed roofing work, moved between roof levels, and sometimes worked from the…
The Davey Tree Surgery Company
Logging items vacated and $300 reporting penalty affirmed
A Davey Tree employee was fatally struck during tree removal in a utility right-of-way. Following Commission precedent in companion Davey Tree cases, the judge found the work was line clearance rather than logging, so the logging standard did not apply. The evidence also showed training on tree…
Durco Contractors, Inc., formally J.R. Durham d/b/a Durco Contractors, Inc.
Five renovation hazards affirmed for $10,600
During a hotel renovation, employees used nearly dark stairs, worked near exposed energized wires, used an extension cord as fixed wiring, rode on a forklift pallet, and operated forklifts without verified training. Durco stopped participating in the case and did not appear at the hearing, leaving…
TKO, Inc. dba TKO Custom Homes
Willful stairway violations affirmed after worker fall
A plumbing subcontractor employee fell from an unguarded apartment stairway and suffered serious injuries. TKO stipulated that its worksite had debris, missing bottom treads, and stairways and landings without required rails. The judge found the railing violations willful because the foreman knew…
Richard Kaposy d/b/a Treeman Landscaping
Rule 60(b)(6) relief denied and penalties left final
OSHA issued two willful and five serious items after an employee was electrocuted when a tree branch contacted a power line. Kaposy withdrew his contest, making the citations and $119,700 in penalties final, but later claimed the settlement judge had promised the penalties would disappear. After…
AAA Roofing
Unprotected awning work draws $1,600 penalty
An AAA Roofing worker installed flashing while sitting on an incomplete steel awning without guardrails, a safety net, or a personal fall-arrest system. He was about seven feet above a scaffold and thirteen feet above the ground. The judge credited the workers' and supervisor's contemporaneous…
Eloy Del Toro
Late contest barred by signed settlement waiver
Eloy Del Toro signed an informal settlement resolving three serious citation items and expressly waived the right to contest the modified citations and penalties. More than a year later, Del Toro filed a notice of contest after financial difficulties interrupted settlement payments. The judge found…
Consolidated Barricades, Inc.
Three-year-late contest dismissed with prejudice
Consolidated Barricades received two serious citation items in December 2012 but did not contest them until November 2015. The company disputed the underlying PPE and forklift allegations but gave no explanation for missing the 15-working-day deadline. The judge found no excusable neglect or other…
Paul Simkus; United Airlines, Inc.
Employee asbestos claims dismissed after settlement
OSHA cited United Airlines over asbestos records, cleanup, and training at a company training center. An employee challenged OSHA's findings and abatement plan, while United separately contested the citations. The Secretary and United later settled for $12,000, represented that the cited conditions…
United States Postal Service
Asbestos item vacated and repeat spider violation affirmed
OSHA cited a Nevada post office over asbestos hazard communication and vermin control, along with several items the Postal Service later stopped contesting. The judge vacated the asbestos item because the Secretary did not prove the cited floor material contained regulated asbestos. The…
Kirtley Roofing and Sheet Metal, LLC
Repeat roof fall violation draws $24,500 penalty
Four Kirtley Roofing employees worked on a low-slope canopy roof with unprotected edges and without an effective fall-protection system. The designated safety monitor performed other tasks, and workers began moving roofing materials before anyone was tied off. The judge also found substantial…
Southern Pan Services Company
Two willful formwork violations affirmed for $125,000
Southern Pan Services Company was the concrete formwork contractor on a six-story parking structure that partially collapsed during a concrete pour. One Southern Pan employee died, another was seriously injured, and more than twenty other workers were injured. After the Commission remanded the…
Richard Snader Installation Partners
Roofing violations affirmed for $33,600
Richard Snader Installation Partners performed roofing work at an apartment building with three workers on the roof. The judge found that the workers were employees under the OSH Act because Richard Snader controlled their work and pay, despite his claim that they were partners. The inspection did…
Jack Durham d/b/a Jack Durham and Company
Awning safety citation vacated because workers were independent contractors
Jack Durham and Company hired a handyman to repair a leaking metal awning at a strip mall. OSHA cited alleged roof fall, training, and ladder violations after inspectors saw two people working on the awning. The judge found that the handyman controlled how to perform the repair, worked for multiple…
JMD Roofing & Siding, LLC
Late contest dismissed after employer stopped participating
OSHA issued JMD Roofing & Siding several serious and other-than-serious construction citations with proposed penalties totaling $8,400. The company received the citation and was told in Spanish how and when to contest it, but filed its notice about six weeks after the deadline. It later stopped…
Cranesville Aggregate Companies, Inc., d/b/a Scotia Bag Plant
Divided Commission leaves six OSHA citations vacated
OSHA issued Cranesville Aggregate three safety citations and three health citations for its bag plant, with proposed penalties totaling $508,500. The judge vacated all six after finding that Mine Safety and Health Administration authority over the facility preempted OSHA jurisdiction. The two…
RG Design Express Inc.
Saw-guard violations affirmed and fall item vacated
RG Design Express was building a home where workers used two table saws without adjustable hood guards or anti-kickback fingers. The judge found that the workers were employees, not independent contractors, and that the foreman's cooperation gave OSHA consent to inspect. Both saw-guard instances…
Citgo Petroleum Corporation
Refinery lockout procedure citation affirmed
Citgo employees isolated a refinery pump for contractor maintenance, but an obstructed valve remained partly open and hydrocarbons escaped before a fire caused extensive property damage. OSHA cited Citgo because its written lockout/tagout procedures did not specify how employees should test and…
Conrad Yelvington Distributors, Inc.
Rail-yard general duty citation affirmed
Conrad Yelvington Distributors operated an aggregate train through a commuter-rail construction site where a derail device had been placed on the track. The train struck the device and overturned, fatally injuring the conductor. OSHA cited the company under the general duty clause for failing to…
Croce Builders Inc.
Contest dismissed after repeated failure to answer
OSHA issued Croce Builders five serious citation items and one other-than-serious item, proposing $32,800 in total penalties. The company filed a timely contest but did not answer the Secretary's complaint. The judge issued two show-cause orders, and court staff also warned the owner by telephone…
David Dzenutis d/b/a Royal Construction Company
Roofing and ladder violations affirmed
Royal Construction employees performed roofing work without a compliant hazard communication program, a nearby fire extinguisher, or adequate fall protection. OSHA also cited unsafe roof access, insufficient ladder extension, carrying a load while descending, and failure to keep one hand on the…
Key Energy Services, LLC
Lightning hazard citation vacated
Three Key Energy employees and another contractor's employee were injured when lightning struck a rural gas-well worksite. OSHA cited Key Energy under the general duty clause and proposed training, stopping work during severe weather, and weather radios as abatement. The judge found that Key Energy…
The Davey Tree Expert Company
Line-clearance logging citations vacated
A Davey Tree crew was felling dead trees near power lines when two trees fell toward the crew and one fatally struck an employee. OSHA pursued two logging-standard items concerning first-aid kit contents and spacing between workers. The Commission applied its companion Davey Tree decision and held…
The Davey Tree Expert Company
Logging citation vacated for utility line-clearance work
A Davey Tree crew was clearing trees near utility lines when a falling tree struck other trees and dislodged a limb that fatally injured an employee. OSHA cited the company under the logging rule for inadequate spacing between workers. The Commission held that the logging standard covers the…
S.J. Louis Construction of Texas
Confined-space citation vacated for lack of employer knowledge
Two S.J. Louis Construction employees died after entering an active sewer manhole containing hydrogen sulfide and very low oxygen. The judge found that the general-industry confined-space rules did not apply to the construction work, but affirmed an alternative general duty clause citation. The…
Sterling Technologies, Inc.
Incomplete settlement order set aside and remanded
OSHA issued Sterling Technologies a serious citation with two items. The judge approved an informal settlement that resolved only one item but mistakenly submitted the order for final docketing. Before the order became final, the parties filed an amended settlement resolving both items, but the…
Peco Foods, Inc.
Eye-protection citation affirmed on poultry debone line
Peco Foods did not allow employees on its poultry debone line to wear safety glasses, although liquid and chicken residue splattered around the work area. OSHA inspected after an employee cut his eyelid with a knife, but the judge found that knives were not among the hazards covered by the cited…
SSA Pacific, Inc.
Gangway citation vacated for lack of employer knowledge
SSA Pacific was unloading vehicles from a ship when someone tied a short plank to a midship gangway that had been designated unsafe and raised out of service. The plank lacked required rails and obstructed passage, and a superintendent used it while trying to have the condition corrected. The judge…
Rheem Manufacturing Co., Inc.
Late-contest ruling set aside for an evidentiary hearing
Rheem Manufacturing filed its notice of contest three weeks late after a security guard signed for the OSHA citation but the document never reached the responsible personnel. Rheem sought relief for excusable neglect and described its mail-handling procedures through an affidavit. The judge denied…
Cooper Tire & Rubber Company
Combustible-dust case settled and dismissed
OSHA cited Cooper Tire over alleged carbon-black dust hazards at its Tupelo tire plant. After withdrawals and a partial settlement, the judge vacated the remaining general duty, hazardous-location, and housekeeping items because the Secretary did not prove the cited combustible-dust conditions…
Mauricio Diaz Construction
Repeat residential fall violation affirmed
Three Mauricio Diaz Construction workers performed framing work near the peak of a two-story duplex roof. OSHA photographs showed that harnesses were not connected to lifelines or anchor points, despite the owner's claim that workers stayed tied off. The judge credited the inspector and found the…
Pepper Contracting Services, Inc.
Highway work-zone struck-by citation affirmed
Pepper Contracting supervised a highway milling operation where an employee was assigned to uncover a utility box in the path of moving dump trucks. A subcontractor's truck struck the employee, who later died from his injuries. The judge found that Pepper knew workers and vehicles could conflict…
All Steel, Inc.
Late contest dismissed for lack of excusable neglect
OSHA issued All Steel two citations containing four items and proposed $2,800 in penalties. The company filed its notice of contest 53 days after the statutory deadline, explaining that family illness and the demands of keeping the business operating caused the delay. The judge found those general…
Charles W. Mason, DDS, & Associates, PLLC
Chemical training and sharps disposal violations affirmed
Clinical assistants at an orthodontic practice handled hydroquinone film-developing solution without effective hazard training and disposed of blood- or saliva-contaminated dental wires in plastic trash bags. The Commission found the chemical hazardous and held that training begun after OSHA's…
Pennrock Construction LLC
LLC members treated as employees for roofing citations
Pennrock Construction performed residential roofing about 15 feet above the ground without fall protection and used a ladder that did not extend three feet above the roof. The company argued that the workers were one-percent LLC members and therefore owners rather than employees covered by the OSH…
Dana Container, Inc.
Confined-space program and willful entry violations affirmed
Dana Container employees entered truck tanks when mechanical washing left residue. A supervisor entered a dirty tank without atmospheric testing, an entry permit, or a retrieval system and was found unconscious. The Commission found his deliberate rule violations foreseeable because management had…
G.E.R.I.N. Home Improvements LLC
Contest dismissed after missing stated deadline
OSHA issued G.E.R.I.N. Home Improvements four serious citation items and one willful item with proposed penalties totaling $21,600. The company received the citations and an OSHA assistant director expressly told its owner that the contest deadline was March 11, 2015. Its notice was postmarked…
Matsu Alabama, Inc., d/b/a A Division of Matcor Automotive, Inc.
Press-safety and repeat machine-guarding citations largely affirmed
Matsu Alabama assigned a temporary worker hired as a janitor to operate and load a mechanical press without adequate press training or supervision. A bent crowder-bar safeguard failed to keep him within the light curtain, and the press caused severe amputation injuries to both hands and one…
Film Allman, LLC
Willful train-trestle hazard citation affirmed
Film Allman directed twenty to twenty-three employees to film a movie scene on an active railroad trestle. The company knew the railroad had twice denied permission, had no railroad representative controlling train traffic, and did not create a workable emergency exit plan. When a train approached…
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…
Byrd Telcom, Inc.
Gin-pole rigging hazard citation affirmed
A Byrd Telcom crew was raising a 40-foot, 1,800-pound gin pole on a cellular tower when a carabiner used in the rigging failed. The falling pole and rigging fatally struck two workers. The judge found that industry practice required properly secured rigging with chokers and a shackle, and that the…
Moorhead Brothers, Inc.
Backup-alarm citation vacated on evenly balanced evidence
Moorhead Brothers was clearing a utility right-of-way in Ohio when a company truck backed over and killed an employee who was on foot. OSHA cited the site-clearing contractor under the construction vehicle standard that requires either an audible reverse alarm or an observer when the driver's rear…
Alro Steel Corporation
Band-saw lockout citation vacated
OSHA cited Alro Steel after inspecting two band saws at its Toledo, Ohio facility. Employees changing blades turned off the saw, locked a cover over the start button, and kept the key, but did not isolate the machines at the main electrical disconnect. The Secretary argued that relying on control…
Basic Energy Services
Well-rig stair and guardrail violations affirmed
Basic Energy Services provided well-servicing work at an oil and gas well near Hawkins, Texas. OSHA observed employees working on an elevated rig platform where stairs between platform levels were broken and replaced with a box, and a roughly six-foot section of guardrail was missing. The judge…
Meadows Construction Company LLC
Roof-anchor and unattended-telehandler violations affirmed
Meadows Construction was replacing shingles on a two-story police station in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Six employees worked on a steep roof about 25 feet above the ground, and one employee connected his fall-arrest system to a reusable roof anchor secured by only one of its two flanges. The…
American Recycling & Manufacturing Co., Inc.
Broad safety violations affirmed after amputation inspection
American Recycling & Manufacturing produced wood packaging materials and pallets at a Rochester, New York facility. OSHA opened a safety inspection after a twenty-year-old employee's left hand was amputated when a coworker accidentally activated a pop-up saw, then opened a related health inspection…
Richard Hargrove d/b/a R. H. Construction
Five repeat construction items vacated for lack of employer coverage
OSHA cited R. H. Construction after observing framing work from a narrow, unsecured forklift-supported platform nearly ten feet above the ground. The workers also lacked cited head, eye, and fall protection, and OSHA alleged that one worker had not received required scaffold training. All five…
Tom Reed Contracting
Default set aside for reconsideration of medical circumstances
An administrative law judge entered a default against Tom Reed Contracting after the company did not file an answer or respond to later orders. The company's owner had timely asked for rescheduling after the first show-cause order because he was receiving treatment for a serious medical condition…
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.