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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HWS Consulting Group, Inc.
Reflective-vest citation vacated
An HWS employee performing road-survey work was struck and killed by a backing dump truck while measuring the crown of a milled street without a reflective vest. OSHA cited the construction personal-protective-equipment standard and later alleged a general duty clause violation in the alternative…
Shaw Environmental & Infrastructure, Inc.
Electrical citation items vacated
A Shaw electrician was severely burned by an electrical arc after opening an energized panel box at a Maryland waste-removal project. OSHA concluded that he was loosening a live lug bolt with an Allen wrench, while Shaw's investigation concluded that a wrench left on top of the box fell when the…
Saiia Construction, LLC
Attorney-fee application denied
Saiia Construction sought attorney fees after OSHA withdrew an item alleging that employees worked beneath a suspended concrete pipe. The compliance officer had recorded immediately after the inspection that employees were under the load and had reported the same fact to his supervisor. After a…
Saiia Construction, LLC
Attorney-fee application denied
Saiia Construction sought attorney fees after OSHA withdrew an item alleging that employees worked beneath a suspended concrete pipe. The compliance officer had recorded immediately after the inspection that employees were under the load and had reported the same fact to his supervisor. After a…
Davis H. Elliot Construction Company, Inc.
Power-line approach citation vacated for lack of employer knowledge
A Davis H. Elliot lineman was electrocuted when a conductive tie contacted an energized 7,200-volt line while he worked from an aerial bucket. He was not using rubber gloves, sleeves, or insulating line covers, although the equipment was available and he had used it on the previous three poles that…
Benson Associates
Scaffold foundation, inspection, and fall-protection items affirmed
Benson Associates used a pump-jack scaffold and planks 13 to 14 feet above the ground while installing soffit and fascia on a Denver house. OSHA found that the scaffold legs lacked proper base plates and that the makeshift fall protection consisted of an Alumibench and boards attached with…
Fastrack Erectors
Attorney-fee application denied
Fastrack Erectors sought $13,091.40 in attorney fees and expenses after a steel-erection fall-protection citation was vacated. OSHA's compliance officer had observed and videotaped two employees working without fall protection on a roof about 30 feet above the ground and believed they came within…
Centimark Roofing Systems
Suspended-load and crane-rigging items vacated
Centimark hired an independent crane company to hoist roofing materials and trash-chute parts to a warehouse roof. During the second chute-parts lift, the load shifted and an eight-foot steel bar slipped out and struck the crane operator. The crane operator had helped rig the load and signaled the…
Stephen K. Korsen, d/b/a MDI Remodeling and Construction
Citations affirmed by default
MDI Remodeling and Construction initially failed to answer the Secretary's complaint and later submitted an answer after receiving additional time. The company then did not respond to a planning-conference notice, its provided telephone numbers were disconnected, and it stopped defending the case…
Zichelle Steel Erectors, Inc.
Willful steel-erection fall violation affirmed
OSHA observed Zichelle employees working near the edge of a fourth-floor steel structure about 44 feet above the ground without effective fall protection. On the first day, one connector was not wearing a harness; on the next day, after OSHA had raised the issue, two connectors wore harnesses but…
Summit Contractors, Inc.
Missing stairway guardrail citation vacated
Summit Contractors was the general contractor for an apartment project where a temporary laborer died after falling 15 feet from an unguarded stairway landing. The guardrail had been removed, but Summit disputed that it knew the temporary crew would enter the building or that the railing was…
Caretti, Inc.
Control-room deck fall citation vacated
Caretti performed masonry work near an unguarded control-room deck that was 15 feet, 4 inches above an auditorium floor. Its foreman placed yellow caution tape across the rear of the deck and instructed employees not to enter the area. OSHA observed employees working beside the deck and one foreman…
The Cincinnati Gas & Electric Co.
Coal-dust housekeeping citation vacated as preempted
OSHA cited Cincinnati Gas & Electric under the general housekeeping standard for combustible coal dust accumulated on surfaces in a power plant. The Secretary argued that disturbed dust could become airborne and fuel a secondary explosion. The Commission found that the record did not identify how a…
Exelon Generating Corp., LaSalle County Station
Personal sign-on required for group lockout
Exelon's group lockout procedure listed covered maintenance employees but allowed a lead worker to notify them verbally when protection was applied or removed. The Commission held that group lockout requires each authorized employee to maintain personal control by attaching and removing a personal…
Active Oil Service, Inc.
Fatal tank-vault violations affirmed, with one item reduced to serious
An Active Oil Service employee was killed and a foreman was seriously burned when an oxy-acetylene torch ignited vapors while they worked in an underground vault above a pyro-oil tank. The Commission held that the shallow vault was still a permit-required confined space because entry and exit were…
Turning Stone Casino Resort
OSHA jurisdiction over tribal casino upheld and case remanded
Turning Stone Casino, owned and operated by the Oneida Indian Nation, moved to dismiss OSHA citations on tribal-sovereignty, treaty, and consultation grounds. The Commission applied the rule that generally applicable federal statutes cover tribal enterprises unless a recognized exception applies…
Commercial Painting, Inc.
Forklift-supported work-platform violations affirmed
Commercial Painting used a rough-terrain forklift to support an employee-built work platform about 21 feet above the ground. The judge held that rough-terrain forklifts are equipment similar to front-end loaders under the scaffold standard and may support personnel platforms only when the…
Structural Grouting Systems Excavating, Inc.
Default judgment vacated after missed conference
A judge entered a $60,500 default judgment after Structural Grouting Systems missed one pretrial telephone conference and did not answer a show-cause order. The employer had timely sought Commission review, but its petition was inadvertently never circulated before the default became final. The…
Missouri Gas Energy
Late notice of contest reinstated by agreement
Missouri Gas Energy filed a late notice of contest after the original excavation citations were signed for by a clerk and then lost internally. A judge granted the Secretary's motion to reject the notice as untimely, and the employer sought Commission review. While review was pending, the Secretary…
Safeway #2555, and its successors
Unguarded bakery-mixer citation vacated for lack of exposure
OSHA cited two unguarded Hobart bakery mixers even though neither mixer was running during the inspection. Safeway employees did not need to add ingredients or put their hands in the bowls while the mixers operated, and the workplace prohibited loose clothing and kept floors clean and dry. The…
Lewis County Dairy Corp.
Commerce dismissal reversed and citations reinstated
After a five-day hearing, the judge dismissed 46 citation items and $141,100 in proposed penalties because he found that Lewis County Dairy was not engaged in a business affecting commerce. The Commission found clear error because the dairy had repeatedly stipulated and admitted that its business…
PICO Industries, Inc.
Fire-escape platform fall citation affirmed
Two PICO employees worked on an unguarded steel fire-escape platform during a Washington, D.C., theater renovation. Part of the platform extended beyond a lower roof, creating an unobstructed 27-foot fall to the street, and photographs showed one worker with a foot extending over the edge. The…
Allstate Painting & Contracting Co., Inc.
All citations vacated because Allstate was not the employer
OSHA cited Allstate Painting for numerous toxic-exposure and fall-protection violations on an Ohio bridge project. Although Allstate held the subcontract, it had assigned its rights and obligations to American Painting, whose long-term employees performed and supervised the work. Applying the…
South Dakota Beverly Enterprises, Inc. d/b/a Beverly Health Care Bella Vista Nursing Home, and Commercial Management, Inc. d/b/a Beverly Health Care - Ipswich
Mixer-guarding citations vacated for lack of exposure
OSHA cited two South Dakota nursing homes for operating unguarded Hobart A-200 food mixers. Employees generally turned the mixers off before adding ingredients, and the only exception involved pouring liquid from a gallon pitcher through the opening above the bowl. The Commission found no…
Nelson Tree Service, Inc.
Bucket-truck safety citations vacated
A Nelson Tree Service crew leader was seriously injured when a bucket truck's crank-arm assembly failed, the boom collapsed, and he was ejected from the bucket. The judge found that the Secretary did not prove the truck lacked the required inspection because the company's annual inspection record…
Caretti, Inc.
Canopy fall-protection citation vacated
A Caretti apprentice bricklayer climbed onto an unguarded school entrance canopy 11 feet above the ground and laid brick without fall protection. The superintendent had assigned him work below the canopy and had directed another crew to add a second scaffold stage that would provide protection for…
Taj Mahal Contracting/Gen Construction Company
Jurisdiction established on remand
The Commission remanded this late-contest case for a clearer determination of whether Taj Mahal Contracting was the employer at the inspected New York construction site. The compliance officer testified that workers identified Taj Mahal and its president, the company's accountant identified…
Kiva Hotel & Convention Center
Citations affirmed after respondent abandoned cases
Kiva Hotel & Convention Center contested citations in two consolidated cases and initially participated through an attorney. A planned settlement was never filed, the business closed, and the attorney could no longer locate the owner. The company did not answer requests for admissions, so the…
Blackstone Group, LLC
Late notice of contest accepted for excusable neglect
Blackstone filed its notice of contest 44 days late after its site superintendent relied on a subcontractor's promise to contest citations issued to both companies. The judge found that the delay was within Blackstone's reasonable control because the superintendent knew the deadline and could have…
Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc.
Power-press inspection program had to cover concealed parts
Siemens performed monthly inspections of 23 mechanical power presses but limited them to visible parts and operating checks. After a press component broke and injured an operator, a repair company found missing springs, loose anchors, oily brakes, and improper adjustments in concealed areas. The…
Carson Concrete Corp. and Carco Construction Corp.
Citations affirmed after refusal to proceed
Carson Concrete and Carco Construction sought a continuance four days before a long-scheduled hearing after changing counsel and disavowing earlier discovery responses. The judge found that the companies had known the hearing date for months, had not opposed key motions, and had waited until the…
Sawyer Steel, Inc.
Steel-joist and fall-protection items partly affirmed
A Sawyer Steel ironworker died after unbridged joists rolled while he released a crane choker from a bundle of perimeter angle that had been landed on the joists. The judge affirmed that the company began steel erection without written concrete-strength notification, failed to attach joists…
AA Plumbing, Inc.
Pro se default judgment set aside and case remanded
A judge entered default against AA Plumbing after the pro se employer did not answer the Secretary's complaint, affirming serious and willful citations with $26,250 in penalties. AA Plumbing told the Commission that it had never received the complaint and learned of the dismissal motion only after…
W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Co., Inc., Heavy Division
Slope fall-protection violations affirmed
A Yates crew installed grass matting on a slope ending at a 65-foot drop. The foreman worked without any fall protection, while two crew members wore their harnesses backward with the foreman's permission because the supplied lanyards were too short for the work. The judge found that the foreman's…
Major Construction Corp., Inc. and Michael J. Polites
Fall citations largely affirmed with $223,200 penalty
Major Construction was the concrete subcontractor on a 32-story structure where OSHA documented extensive fall-protection and related violations, including violations after an imminent-danger notice was posted. The Commission largely upheld the judge's findings on feasibility, employer…
Hercules, Inc. and Alliant Techsystems, Inc.
Recordkeeping failure-to-abate notices vacated
OSHA issued Hercules failure-to-abate notices after a settlement required correction of old injury logs and certifications. The underlying citation listed only broad injury categories and counts, while OSHA repeatedly declined to identify the employees and incidents that had to be added. The…
Samuel Filisko d/b/a Associated Contractors Group
$141,000 default set aside for uncertain service
A judge entered default against Associated Contractors Group after the pro se employer filed a late answer and did not respond to a show-cause order, affirming citations with $141,000 in proposed penalties. The service certificate misspelled the company address, and postal tracking showed that the…
Davis H. Elliot Company
Power-line citation vacated for unpreventable misconduct
A Davis H. Elliot Company foreman was electrocuted when a 6-foot-4-inch ground wire contacted a 7,200-volt line about 52 inches away. He did not use the available rubber gloves, sleeves, or insulating hoses. The judge found that the ground wire breached the minimum approach distance and that the…
Purler-Cannon-Schulte, Inc.
Repeat cave-in protection violation affirmed
Purler-Cannon-Schulte was installing a 72-inch storm sewer line when OSHA found its foreman working near an almost vertical wall in an excavation about 11 feet deep. The soil was Type B, and the south wall lacked adequate sloping, benching, shoring, or shielding. The judge rejected the company's…
Akwesasne Mohawk Casino
Treaty-based OSHA dismissal reversed and case remanded
OSHA inspected the tribal casino and a nearby warehouse and issued two citations. The judge dismissed them on the theory that applying the OSH Act would violate treaties covering the Six Nations. The Commission held that the St. Regis Indians and their reservation were governed by different…
Daniel Koury Construction, Inc.
Default vacated after one missed conference
A judge entered default against Daniel Koury Construction after its president missed one pretrial telephone conference, affirming a citation and a $600 proposed penalty. The show-cause order was not sent by the certified mail required by Commission rules, the record did not establish receipt, and…
Thomas Lindstrom & Co., Inc.
Fifth-floor fall-protection violations affirmed
Thomas Lindstrom & Co. employees performed steel erection on the fifth level of a Philadelphia building about 60 feet above the ground. An OSHA compliance officer recorded three ironworkers near an unprotected edge without being tied off. The judge credited the officer and the video over employee…
Soltek Pacific
Floor-hole violation reduced to other-than-serious with no penalty
Soltek Pacific was the general contractor for a multi-story barracks project at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. OSHA found two uncovered seven-inch floor openings above electrical subcontractor employees working on the level below. Soltek did not dispute that covers were required, but challenged…
Southern Foods, d/b/a Meadow Gold Dairies
Most lockout and guarding items vacated after trimmer injury
A Meadow Gold Dairies employee lost a finger while clearing a jam from a milk-jug trimmer after employees propped its reset button in the on position. The judge vacated a lockout-procedure item because the company's written procedures addressed the hazardous energy sources identified for the…
Darby Creek Excavating
Four excavation items vacated and one inspection violation affirmed
Darby Creek Excavating was installing a water line when OSHA found an employee in a deep excavation with accumulated water, no ladder, and no cave-in protection. The judge vacated the general duty clause item because the Secretary did not prove that failing to barricade the excavator's swing radius…
Saiia Construction
Concrete-pipe lifting hazard citation vacated
Saiia Construction was installing concrete pipe in an excavation when OSHA investigated a worksite accident. The remaining citation alleged that an employee in the trench was exposed to being struck by a concrete pipe as an excavator lifted it. The judge found that the hazard was recognized but…
Simon Roofing and Sheet Metal, Inc.
Late-notice case remanded for excusable-neglect analysis
Simon Roofing filed its notice of contest months late after a temporary employee signed for the OSHA citation and the document was misplaced. The judge denied relief, finding that the company's mail-handling procedures were inadequate. The Third Circuit later vacated the Commission's final order on…
The Timken Company
Split Commission leaves two lockout violations in place
OSHA cited Timken after a maintenance employee was seriously injured when part of a steel mill moved during a hydraulic-hose repair. The judge found that the company had not adequately trained its authorized employees on hazardous energy control and that the mill had not been fully locked out. She…
Marcella Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Cinnaminson Nursing Center, Geriatric & Medical Services
EAJA fee request denied after parent assets aggregated
Three nursing facilities sought attorney fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Each facility individually met the size and net-worth limits, but their corporate parent, Genesis Health Ventures, did not. On remand, the judge found that Genesis exercised extensive control over the…
Davis Brothers Construction Company, Inc.
Late notice dismissal affirmed for lack of proof
Davis Brothers claimed that its safety consultant timely left a notice of contest with an OSHA receptionist after an informal conference. OSHA had no record of receiving the letter and sent two abatement notices before receiving a later copy. The judge credited OSHA's established document-handling…
Taj Mahal Contracting/Gen Construction Co.
Late-contest case remanded to decide employer identity
OSHA issued construction citations with $9,300 in proposed penalties to Taj Mahal Contracting, which filed its notice of contest three days late. The owner claimed that OSHA had cited the wrong company and that his sole proprietorship had no employees. The Commission agreed with the judge that the…
Environmental Enterprises, Inc.
Settlement motion prompted remand for employee comment
Environmental Enterprises treated hazardous wastewater at its Cincinnati facility, where mixing sodium sulfide and an acid generated hydrogen sulfide that rendered an employee unconscious. The judge affirmed three serious violations involving excessive exposure, engineering or administrative…
J. Mess Plumbing Co., Inc.
Five excavation violations affirmed and two vacated
J. Mess Plumbing sent crews to locate and repair a sewer line through an excavation more than nine feet deep in a residential yard. OSHA cited the company for seven alleged violations involving traffic protection, warning vests, atmospheric testing, spoil placement, training, competent-person…
Suttles Truck Leasing, Inc.
Seven violations affirmed with reduced penalties
Suttles washed tank trailers that had carried hazardous chemicals, and employees sometimes entered the washed tanks for inspection or residue removal. The Commission held that the tanks remained permit-required confined spaces after washing because the washing process was part of the company's…
Arcadian Corporation
Willful reactor-safety violation affirmed after explosion
A pressurized urea reactor exploded at Arcadian's fertilizer plant after corrosive material breached its stainless steel liner and damaged the load-bearing carbon steel layers. The Commission found that Arcadian and its industry recognized the danger of continuing to operate a leaking reactor and…
Jan Five Corp. d/b/a Alexandra Construction
Three willful steel-erection violations affirmed
Alexandra Construction was the general contractor on a high school project where a 55-foot steel column fell after its modified anchor bolts pulled out. Before steel erection began, Alexandra failed to give the erector written notice that the concrete had adequate strength and that anchor-bolt…
Epernay Design and Construction, LLC
Willful anchor-bolt violation affirmed after column collapse
Epernay was the concrete and foundation subcontractor on a high school project where a 55-foot steel column fell shortly after being detached from a crane. Epernay's crew had cut off and replaced anchor bolts without first obtaining the project structural engineer's approval, and all four modified…
Genesis HealthCare Corp. d/b/a Cooper River East Center
Needle-safety violations affirmed and sharps item vacated
Genesis operated a nursing home where an employee sustained a needlestick from a prefilled syringe that lacked a built-in guard. The judge found that nurses had used prefilled syringes without the required add-on needle guards and that Genesis could not show reliable annual training or records…
Marcella Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Cinnaminson Nursing Center, and Geriatric Medical Services, Cooper River, East
EAJA eligibility remanded for parent-control findings
Three nursing facilities prevailed when the judge vacated their bloodborne-pathogen citations and then sought attorney fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. Each facility independently met the employee and net-worth limits, but their parent company, Genesis Health Ventures…
Emery Air Freight Corporation
K-Loader fall violations affirmed despite FAA claim
Emery cargo handlers rode unguarded elevator platforms on K-Loader trucks to reach aircraft cargo doors, exposing them to falls of more than 4 feet and as much as 13 feet. Emery argued that Federal Aviation Administration oversight displaced OSHA jurisdiction because the FAA had approved an airline…
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.