Federal Agency Decisions
Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board, each with a plain-English summary, the standards it cites, and whether it counts as precedent. More agencies are coming.
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J.W. Delahoussaye & Sons, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving J.W. Delahoussaye & Sons, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to…
Litton Systems, Inc., Ingalls Shipbuilding Division
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Litton Systems, Inc., Ingalls Shipbuilding Division. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or…
W.H. Allgood and Company
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving W.H. Allgood and Company. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to change…
Dravo Corp.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Dravo Corporation. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no party…
Rupert Plumbing & Heating Co., Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Rupert Plumbing & Heating Co., Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it…
Sunbell Corporation
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Sunbell Corporation. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no party…
Ve-Alite Plastic Corp.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Ve-Alite Plastic Corp. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no party…
R. Colwill Excavating, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving R. Colwill Excavating, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no…
Capitol Temptrol Corp.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Capitol Temptrol Corp. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no party…
Armor Shield, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Armor Shield, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no party…
United States Sugar Corp.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving United States Sugar Corp. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected to the judge's ruling or otherwise expressed dissatisfaction with it. The Commission found no…
Frontier Roofing Co., Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Frontier Roofing Company, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because…
C. L. Cook, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving C. L. Cook, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, the Commission brought it up for review on its own motion. Neither party objected to the judge's decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because no party…
Westinghouse Electric Corp.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Westinghouse Electric Corp. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected to that decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because the review order…
Howard P. Foley Co.
Commission finds the electrical violations unpreventable
Howard P. Foley Co. employed electricians at a building construction project where a journeyman was electrocuted while installing a 277-volt exit light. A wiring error left the circuit energized even though the circuit breaker shown on the diagram was disconnected, and the employee did not use his…
Braswell Motor Freight Lines, Inc.
Commission distinguishes recurring violations from failure to abate
Braswell Motor Freight Lines operated a freight terminal that OSHA reinspected after several uncontested citations became final orders. The Commission affirmed a failure to abate the missing stair handrail but assessed no penalty because the company made substantial good-faith efforts and the…
Greyhound Lines, Inc.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Greyhound Lines, Inc. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling. Because the review order identified no…
Lembke Construction Co., Inc.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Lembke Construction Co., Inc. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected to the decision or otherwise asked the Commission to change it. Because the review order…
Gamblin Electric Co.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Gamblin Electric Co. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected to the decision or asked the Commission to change it. The Commission found no compelling public…
M.C.L., Inc.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving M.C.L., Inc. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling. The Commission found no compelling public interest…
Great Falls Tribune Company
Proposed pressroom noise controls were not economically feasible
The Great Falls Tribune operated newspaper presses that exposed pressroom employees to average noise near 100 dBA during runs averaging about three and one-half hours. The company required earmuffs that reduced exposure by at least 20 dBA when worn properly. Engineering controls modeled on another…
Miller Valentine Corporation
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order covering two dockets involving Miller Valentine Corporation. The Commission called the consolidated case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling…
General Electric Company, Inc.
Commission affirms two violations and vacates two others
OSHA cited General Electric after inspecting its Schenectady, New York, worksite. The Commission vacated a machine-guarding citation because guards and a spacer protected the radiac cutoff machine's point of operation, and it also left an electrical citation vacated. It affirmed a general duty…
Castle & Cooke Foods, a Division of Castle & Cooke, Inc.
Commission finds proposed noise controls economically infeasible
Castle & Cooke Foods operated a Hawaiian can plant and cannery where employees worked around machines producing noise above the limits in OSHA's noise standard. The company provided mandatory hearing protection, while the proposed engineering controls would require custom machine enclosures and a…
Glass Menagerie Company
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Glass Menagerie Company. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to change…
Serge Elevator Company, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Serge Elevator Company, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to…
American Window Cleaning Company
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving American Window Cleaning Company. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission…
Invirex Demolition, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Invirex Demolition, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to change…
Blake Construction Co., Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Blake Construction Co., Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to…
Miller and Long Company of Maryland, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Miller and Long Company of Maryland, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the…
Federal Steel Corporation
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Federal Steel Corporation. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to…
Building Specialties, Inc.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Building Specialties, Inc. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling. Because the review order identified…
Bethlehem Steel Corporation
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Bethlehem Steel Corporation. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling. Because the review order identified…
The Israel Realty Corp.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving The Israel Realty Corp. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling. Because the review order identified no…
Oscar J. Boldt Construction Co.
Commission lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order involving Oscar J. Boldt Construction Co. The Commission called the case for review on its own motion after an Administrative Law Judge issued a decision. Neither party objected or otherwise asked the Commission to change the ruling. Because the review order…
Cornell & Co., Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Cornell & Co., Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to change the…
Consolidated Freightways Corporation
OSHA applies to unguarded truck maintenance pits
Consolidated Freightways operated a truck terminal maintenance shop with seven service pits and about 300 employees. The company argued that federal motor-carrier regulation displaced OSHA jurisdiction, but the Commission found no other federal regulation governing maintenance-shop safety and held…
Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph Company
Commission permits withdrawal of a telephone-manhole citation
OSHA cited Southern Bell for not keeping an employee nearby to render emergency assistance while another employee worked in a telephone manhole. The Secretary later sought dismissal because the cited construction standard governed electric power transmission and distribution, not telecommunications…
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp.
Noise citation fails without proof that specific controls were feasible
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel employees at an Ohio mill were exposed to noise above OSHA's permissible levels in five work areas. OSHA's industrial hygienist described general noise-reduction methods for four areas but lacked noise-control expertise, gave no expected reduction levels, and offered no…
Willamette Iron and Steel Company
Shipboard housekeeping violation was not preventable
Willamette Iron and Steel was repairing a Navy vessel while about 400 Navy personnel performed similar work aboard the ship. Tools, hoses, and electrical leads repeatedly obstructed walkways, but the judge found that Navy personnel created the conditions and that the company complained to the Navy…
Dayton Metal Products, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Dayton Metal Products, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to…
Howrey Lumber Company, Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Howrey Lumber Company, Inc. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or asked the Commission to…
Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corp., Wheeling Corrugating Company, Division of Wheeling-Pittsburgh Corporation
Older-crane guarding citations are vacated
These consolidated cases involved electrical and moving-part guarding requirements for overhead and gantry cranes. The Commission held that the cited requirements were design specifications that were mandatory for cranes installed on or after August 31, 1971, but advisory for older cranes. Because…
Thomco, Inc.
Commission declines review and affirms the ALJ decision
This is a short procedural order in the consolidated cases of Thomco, Inc. (Docket Nos. 76-1498 and 76-1402). The case came to the Commission on its own (sua sponte) order for review, but neither party filed objections, a petition for discretionary review, or any expression of dissatisfaction with…
Colfry Brothers Terrazzo Contractors, Inc.
Commission declines review and affirms the ALJ decision
This is a short procedural order in a case involving Colfry Brothers Terrazzo Contractors, Inc. The case came to the Commission on its own (sua sponte) order for review, but neither party filed objections, a petition for discretionary review, or any expression of dissatisfaction with the…
Tom Stewart Construction Co., Inc.
Commission declines review and lets the judge's decision stand
This is a short Commission order in a case involving Tom Stewart Construction Co., a construction employer. After an Administrative Law Judge ruled on the case, a Commissioner brought it up for review on the Commission's own motion (a sua sponte order for review). Neither side filed objections or…
Otis Elevator Company
Elevator-car top was not a floor or platform requiring guardrails
Two Otis Elevator employees stood on top of an elevator car while painting counterweight rails during installation. OSHA alleged a repeated violation because the car top lacked a standard railing. The Commission held that the surface was the roof of the elevator car, not an open-sided floor or a…
M. K. Binkley Construction Company
OSHA did not prove a feasible roof fall-protection method
M. K. Binkley Construction employees installed roof decking near an edge with a possible fall of 15 to 20 feet and wore no fall-protection equipment. OSHA proposed safety belts and lanyards connected to lifelines attached to the walls or to a new frame around the roof perimeter. The Commission held…
Paramount Plumbing & Heating Co.
Two shared-site hazards affirmed, open-floor item vacated
Paramount Plumbing worked as a subcontractor on a New York City high-rise project. The Commission vacated an open-floor guardrail item because OSHA did not prove that Paramount's employees would enter the fall-hazard zones on the seventh or twenty-ninth floors. It affirmed items involving ladder…
Clarence Brown, d/b/a Brown's Contracting
First-aid item vacated, ladder and scaffold violations stand
Brown's Contracting was reroofing and residing a residential building when OSHA cited first-aid, ladder, and scaffold conditions. The Commission reviewed the first-aid item and held that OSHA did not prove supplies were unavailable because an employee said bandages were generally kept in the trucks…
Westburne Drilling, Inc.
Two items vacated and one left de minimis
Three items from a nonserious citation against Westburne Drilling were before the Administrative Law Judge. The judge vacated items 1 and 2 and classified item 8 as de minimis with no penalty. The employer sought vacation of all three items, while the Secretary did not object to the judge's…
B. F. Goodrich Textile Products, a Division of The B. F. Goodrich Co.
Employer knowledge supplied adequate notice of machine violations
B. F. Goodrich manufactured tire cord and related products at a large Georgia textile plant. OSHA cited unguarded card-machine pulleys, unguarded loom sprockets and chains, fire extinguishers mounted too high, and missing signed crane-inspection reports without identifying every machine or…
I.T.O. Corporation of New England; John T. Clark & Son of Boston, Inc.; Terminal Services, Inc.
Withdrawn contests reinstate citations
An Administrative Law Judge had vacated citations against three employers in five consolidated dockets. After that decision, the employers asked to withdraw their notices of contest and terminate the proceedings. The Commission granted the request because it served the purposes of the OSH Act. It…
GAF Corporation
Two items affirmed under precedent, one dismissed
An Administrative Law Judge affirmed three citation items against GAF Corporation under subsections of the cited standard. On review, both parties agreed that an earlier divided Commission decision involving GAF controlled the first two items. A Commission majority therefore affirmed items 4a and…
Schiavone Construction Co.
Fall protection and cylinder items affirmed, air hose item vacated
Schiavone Construction was building an interstate highway when an employee worked on pile-driver leads without fall protection, about 14 feet above a steel platform and 20 feet above protruding steel piles. The Commission upheld the serious personal protective equipment citation because the…
Texaco, Inc.
Commission vacates a judge's order and remands to consider an amendment request
This is a brief procedural order in a case involving Texaco, Inc. The Commission directed the case for review on its own authority under 29 U.S.C. § 661(i). It vacated an order that Administrative Law Judge McQuade had issued on April 7, 1977, and sent the case back to the judge so that he could…
Geuder, Paeschke & Frey Company
Settlement approved after union received a hearing
OSHA cited metal-products fabricator Geuder, Paeschke & Frey for one serious general duty clause violation and 44 nonserious violations. The Secretary and employer proposed a settlement that deleted several nonserious items, extended two abatement periods, reduced three proposed penalties, and…
Marion Stephens, d/b/a Chapman & Stephens Company
General duty violation affirmed for work near a power line
Chapman & Stephens grew citrus and used 20-foot steel sprinkler pipes in a grove crossed by a low 7,200-volt power line. While three workers removed a bent pipe near the line, the pipe contacted it, killing one employee, rendering another unconscious, and knocking the supervisor to the ground. The…
Syracuse Rigging Co., Inc.
Hoist citation vacated because a new charge was not tried by consent
Syracuse Rigging used power drills to operate manual chain hoists while lowering a 68,800-pound tank, which fell and fatally injured an employee. OSHA cited the general duty clause and later added an alternative charge that the hoists did not let operators stand clear of the load. The judge…
Armco Steel Corporation
Housekeeping violations affirmed for wet and oily work areas
OSHA cited seven areas at Armco Steel's workplace for accumulations of oil, water, or grease, and the judge affirmed five of those subitems. Employees had reason to walk in or near the accumulations. Armco argued that the conditions were inherent or temporary, that they were corrected within a…
What these documents are
- The agencies: Workplace-safety cases from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC), mine-safety cases from the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission (FMSHRC), and environmental permit and penalty appeals from the EPA's Environmental Appeals Board (EAB). Each decision page names its agency.
- Commission and Board decisions: Rulings by the agency's highest review level (the Commission at OSHRC and FMSHRC, the Environmental Appeals Board at EPA). These are citable as precedent, though a decision may have been appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals after issuance.
- ALJ decisions: Rulings by the agency's Administrative Law Judges after a hearing. When no Commissioner directs review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order that binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent: under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j) at OSHRC, and after the 40-day window of 30 U.S.C. § 823(d)(1) at FMSHRC.
- 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 public release from the deciding agency, and the full text on the page is that release. The plain-English summaries are written by Ezel.