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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Gunite Corporation
Willful silica and respirator violations affirmed
Gunite operated a truck-parts foundry where employees were exposed to respirable silica from large quantities of sand used in the casting process. The Commission vacated four air-contaminant items because respirators provided adequate protection for four cited employees and the Secretary did not…
Avon Contractors, Inc.
Late-contest case remanded for a merits hearing
Avon Contractors filed its notice contesting OSHA citations after the statutory deadline. The Third Circuit held that the late filing resulted from excusable neglect, vacated the Commission order dismissing the contest, and directed that the citations be heard on their merits. The Commission…
George Harms Construction Co., Inc.
Late-contest case remanded for a merits hearing
George Harms Construction filed its notice contesting OSHA citations after the statutory deadline. The Third Circuit found excusable neglect, vacated the Commission order dismissing the contest, and reaffirmed that the Commission may grant relief from a late filing under Federal Rule of Civil…
MasTec North America, Inc., successor of Weeks Construction, Inc.
Energized-line citation vacated and general-duty claim remanded
A MasTec employee was fatally electrocuted while removing slack from an energized 7,200-volt utility line after the cut ends swung into his body. OSHA alleged that the employee worked inside the minimum approach distance without adequate insulation, even though he wore voltage-rated gloves and…
Bridges Grading & Hauling, Inc.
Two trench violations affirmed and inspection item vacated
Bridges was laying storm pipe at a residential development while an employee worked in a trench more than eight feet deep. The judge found that the company provided no safe means of egress and allowed the spoil pile to rise directly from the trench edge without an adequate retaining device. She…
DCM Erectors, Inc.
Fall, training, and eye-protection violations affirmed
DCM performed steel erection on a high-rise project where an employee died after slipping on a snow-covered deck and falling through a large unguarded opening. The judge found a repeated violation because safety cabling had been removed from one side of the opening and not replaced, even though DCM…
S. A. Storer and Sons Co.
Repeat scaffold violation narrowed on remand
After court and Commission review, the judge was directed to narrow a repeat scaffold fall-protection citation. He vacated the allegation concerning a window-opening area but affirmed the violation at a materials-staging area. One employee there was exposed to a fall of about 19 to 20 feet, and the…
Prime Roofing Corp.
Late notice of contest dismissed
Prime Roofing filed its notice contesting an OSHA citation after the 15-working-day deadline. The company explained that the departure of a key employee had severely disrupted its small business and required its president to focus on rebuilding sales. The judge found that the president knew of the…
Construction 2000, Inc.
Late notice of contest dismissed
Construction 2000 filed its notice contesting an OSHA citation after the 15-working-day deadline. Its president explained that he was out of state caring for a sick relative when the citation arrived and that his small business had no clerical staff or procedure for handling important mail during…
ARCON, Inc.
Six asbestos violations affirmed and three vacated
ARCON removed asbestos-containing wallboard from crew spaces aboard a ship, where panels broke apart, air samples exceeded exposure limits, and containment sheeting had holes and gaps. The Commission held that the required sampling method supported the asbestos exposure findings and affirmed the…
R. Williams Construction Company
Five trench-safety violations affirmed
Two employees entered a waterlogged, unshored sewer trench to clean pumps, and the trench collapsed, killing one employee and severely injuring the other. The judge found that R. Williams provided almost no trench-safety training, lacked a safe egress route, and used supervisors who were not…
North Dallas Acrylic & Stucco, Inc.
Scaffold case remanded for new evidence findings
A judge had affirmed two scaffold citation items and assessed a $250 penalty for each. The Fifth Circuit vacated those items because the judge had not applied the proper legal standard when evaluating the evidence and emphasized that weighing the evidence was the judge's responsibility. The…
Tradesmen Group, Inc.
Two fall-protection violations affirmed
Tradesmen Group performed renovation, remodeling, and historical restoration work at a site in Peninsula, Ohio. OSHA cited the company after two employees worked from an aerial lift and on a working surface without required fall protection. After a hearing, the judge issued a bench decision finding…
RMS Construction, Inc.
Trench and worksite violations affirmed
RMS Construction was a subcontractor building a block wall in a deep trench on a New Jersey road and bridge project. OSHA found RMS employees working outside the trench box in Type C soil, with no safe egress, no competent-person inspections, uncapped rebar, inadequate hazard training and worksite…
Richard Kenda Farms
Field water violation affirmed, two sanitation items vacated
Richard Kenda Farms used seasonal workers to hand harvest vegetables in Florida fields. The judge found that potable water was sometimes not brought to workers until one to four hours after harvesting began in hot conditions, so he affirmed that violation as serious. He vacated the single-use cup…
Alexander G. McLaren
Ship-repair citations split
Alexander G. McLaren employed workers to convert two former Canadian naval vessels into pleasure craft in Washington. The judge upheld OSHA's inspection warrant and rejected McLaren's challenge to agency jurisdiction. He vacated three atmosphere-testing allegations because the fuel tank's top had…
S & F Concrete Contractors
Cord item reduced, guardrail violation affirmed
S & F Concrete Contractors was placing concrete at a multistory hospital construction project in Boston. The judge affirmed an electrical-cord violation but reclassified it as other-than-serious because the exposed color-coded conductors were not cut, frayed, or a shock hazard in the condition…
CB&I Constructors, Inc.
Competent-person inspection violation affirmed
CB&I Constructors was erecting a 180-foot water tower in Illinois when an employee fell from a fixed ladder and died. The contested item alleged that designated competent persons failed to make frequent and regular inspections that would have discovered the absence of a required ladder safety…
S.A. Storer and Sons, Co.
Court-directed scaffold remand ordered
The D.C. Circuit vacated part of the Commission's earlier order concerning scaffold fall protection at two work areas. The court affirmed the violation at the materials-staging area but vacated it at the window-opening area. The Commission remanded the case to the ALJ with directions to enter those…
Thomann Asphalt Paving Corp.
Roller rollover citation vacated
A Thomann Asphalt Paving employee died when a roller without a rollover protective structure slid from an embankment and overturned at a New York school construction site. OSHA cited the company under the general duty clause, alleging that a rollover protective structure was a feasible way to…
Central Building & Preservation, L.P.
High-rise fall-protection violation affirmed
Central Building & Preservation assigned two employees to mix mortar and stage materials on the 24th floor of a Chicago building. They worked within a foot of parapets as low as 15 to 17 inches without a guardrail, safety net, or personal fall arrest system. The company admitted technical…
Sturm Ruger & Co., Pine Tree Castings Division
Targeted inspection and settlements affirmed
OSHA used injury and illness data from Pine Tree Castings to select the handgun-casting facility for a programmed inspection under a nationwide targeting plan. Sturm Ruger challenged the data survey, inspection warrant, discovery rulings, evidence, and subpoenas. The Commission held that OSHA had…
Danica Plumbing and Heating, Inc.
Late contest dismissed after default
OSHA issued Danica Plumbing and Heating a serious citation after inspecting a Bronx worksite. The company received the remailed citation but did not submit its notice of contest within the 15-working-day deadline. It then failed to appear for the hearing on the late filing even though the Secretary…
G. A. West & Company, Inc.
Unsecured raised-load violation affirmed
G. A. West employees used a hydraulic jack while preparing a 41,000-pound paper-machine roll for shipment at an Alabama demolition site. The roll was not cribbed, blocked, or otherwise secured before employees tried to remove a dolly beneath it, and it fell and fatally injured one employee. The…
Techno Coatings
Lead-abatement citations split
Techno Coatings removed lead-based paint at a naval pier in San Diego. The judge found that the company lacked a valid initial exposure assessment because its historical data came from different bridge locations and did not reliably match the current work. OSHA's own air samples did not credibly…
Universal Maritime Service Corp. APM Terminal
Container fall-protection citations vacated
A longshoreman died after a crane unexpectedly lifted a container while he was on top detaching auxiliary lifting hooks. OSHA cited Universal Maritime for unsafe access to the container and failure to protect the employee from fall hazards while on top. The cited marine-terminal rules depended on…
Staz-On Roofing, Inc.
Partial attorney-fee award granted
OSHA withdrew a fall-hazard training item against Staz-On Roofing at the start of the merits hearing, and the employer sought attorney fees and expenses under the Equal Access to Justice Act. The judge found Staz-On eligible and a prevailing party on the withdrawn item. He held that the Secretary…
Well Rise Fashion
Late notice of contest dismissed
OSHA issued Well Rise Fashion serious and non-serious citations after inspecting its New York worksite. The company responded more than two months after the 15-working-day contest period had expired and asked for reconsideration and lower penalties. The judge found no deception by the Secretary…
Lourdes Hospital
Bloodborne items vacated, lockout items affirmed
OSHA cited Lourdes Hospital for operating-room practices under the bloodborne-pathogens standard and maintenance procedures under the lockout/tagout standard. The judge found that Lourdes' neutral-zone policy, including a limited exception for hand-to-hand sharps transfers, satisfied the…
Pennsylvania American Water
Withdrawal order set aside and remanded
The Secretary withdrew a citation against Pennsylvania American Water and told the ALJ that the employer had agreed to take specified actions. After the ALJ entered an order reflecting that notice, the employer petitioned for review and said it had not agreed to those actions. The parties jointly…
Structural Building Systems, Inc.
Steel-erection fall violation affirmed
Structural Building Systems supplied a steel-erection crew for a new Ohio middle school. A foreman and an employee moved a heavy steel tube about 20 feet above a concrete floor without tying off, and the employee fell and sustained serious injuries. The judge rejected the company's unpreventable…
Western National Construction
Late contest dismissed after nonappearance
Western National Construction received an OSHA citation but did not contest it before the deadline, so it became a final Commission order. Months later, a safety representative asked to file late, stating only that the citation had not reached the appropriate person and had fallen through the…
Stuck in the Mud
Scaffold violations affirmed after jurisdiction challenge
Thomas Slingluff, doing business as Stuck in the Mud, performed stucco work from an inadequately protected scaffold in Colorado. He admitted the scaffold conditions but argued that he was not an employer engaged in commerce and therefore was outside the OSH Act. The judge found that Slingluff hired…
Spirit Homes, Inc.
Hardhat violation reduced from willful to serious
Employees at Spirit Homes worked below mobile-home roofs and scaffolds without hardhats while other employees used tools and materials overhead. The Commission agreed that the company violated the protective-helmet standard but reversed the ALJ's willful characterization. After an earlier citation…
Lanzo Construction Co., Inc
Diving and excavation violations reclassified as willful
Lanzo Construction installed large sewer pipe in a water-filled excavation using a surface-supplied diver. The Commission rejected Lanzo's request for dismissal based on the Secretary's counsel communicating with the diver, finding the record did not establish an ethical violation warranting…
Hercules, Inc., & Alliant Techsystems, Inc.
Explosion-hazard failure-to-abate notice vacated
Hercules had previously settled general-duty citations concerning explosion hazards at an explosives facility and agreed to abate them. OSHA later alleged that hazards remained at a loop road and a control building for 440 days and proposed $3.08 million in failure-to-abate penalties. The ALJ…
PAR Electrical Contractors, Inc.
Repeat energized-line violation affirmed
Two journeyman linemen worked from an aerial-lift bucket near a 12,470-volt conductor without insulating gloves, and one was electrocuted while the other sustained burns. The Commission found that the employees breached the required two-foot approach distance while maneuvering a heavy new conductor…
Westar Energy
Electrical citation vacated for unpreventable misconduct
A Westar Energy apprentice was electrocuted after entering the minimum approach distance of an energized transformer compartment without the required high-voltage rubber gloves. The company did not dispute the unsafe condition or that the foreman was present, but asserted unpreventable employee…
Gillette Masonry, Inc.
Unopposed late contest dismissed
OSHA issued Gillette Masonry serious and other-than-serious citations with a $500 penalty after inspecting its Pennsylvania workplace. The company submitted its notice of contest after the 15-working-day deadline. The Secretary moved to dismiss the late filing, and the employer filed no response…
Wal-Mart Super Center
Repeat blocked-egress violation affirmed
Boxes, pallets, a forklift, and a conveyor system obstructed routes to the designated emergency exit in a Wal-Mart stockroom during the holiday receiving season. The judge found that three of four aisles were completely blocked and that employees beyond the conveyor could not make full and instant…
Marine Propulsion Services, Inc.
Lathe item affirmed, milling-machine item vacated
Marine Propulsion Services operated a mobile machine shop at a Portland ship-repair site. The judge found that an unguarded lathe chuck exposed the machinist to rotating jaws and surfaces that could catch clothing, rags, hair, or fingers, and that an available transparent barrier guard was…
RK Hydro-Vac, Inc.
Roof-edge fall violation affirmed
An RK Hydro-Vac employee leaned over the unprotected edge of a 30-foot roof without tying off after returning from lunch. The company had adequate written fall-protection rules, supplied each worker with equipment, and provided extensive initial and twice-yearly training. The judge nevertheless…
Arby Construction Company
Trench cave-in violation affirmed
Three Arby Construction employees worked in a six-foot-deep, vertical-sided Type B soil trench without sloping, shoring, or a trench box. The judge rejected the foreman's claim that he believed the trench was under five feet deep, finding the condition obvious from his position directly above the…
Artistic Enterprises, Inc.
Five scaffold and hard-hat violations affirmed
Two stucco workers used a two-level scaffold without hard hats, full planking, safe ladder access, fall protection, or toeboards at an Alabama hotel project. Artistic Enterprises argued that another company employed the workers, but the judge rejected that claim based on the workers' statements…
Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital, Inc.
Temporary-worker violations affirmed as non-willful
Froedtert used temporary-agency housekeepers who were exposed to bloodborne-pathogen and chemical hazards at the hospital. The Commission held that Froedtert was their common-law employer because it controlled their assignments, daily activities, tools, work location, and performance, even though…
Simon Roofing and Sheet Metal, Inc.
Late contest dismissed for deficient mail handling
A temporary employee signed for Simon Roofing's OSHA citation, but the document was misplaced and did not reach the corporate safety manager until months after the contest deadline. The judge held that businesses must maintain orderly procedures for handling important documents and that employee…
Vandervoort's Dairy Foods Company
Lockout/tagout training citation vacated
Vandervoort's Dairy Foods Company distributed dairy products and fruit drinks at a Fort Worth plant where an employee died after being caught in a depalletizer. OSHA cited the company for inadequate training under the lockout/tagout standard. The judge found the cited standard inapplicable to the…
McLeod Land Services, Inc.
Four serious trench violations affirmed
McLeod Land Services installed underground drainage pipe at a retirement-community construction project in Sarasota, Florida. Two employees worked in a trench while an excavator's tracks extended over its unsupported vertical end wall. The judge found that McLeod did not adequately train its…
Randalls Food and Drugs, Inc.
Ammonia process-safety violations split
Randalls Food and Drugs operated a Houston food warehouse with an anhydrous-ammonia refrigeration system. The judge affirmed a process-safety violation because Randalls did not timely complete, document, and communicate actions responding to its process-hazard analysis. He also affirmed…
Schimenti Construction Co.
Citations affirmed after contest abandoned
OSHA cited Schimenti Construction after inspecting a Hartsdale, New York worksite. The company did not appear for a telephone prehearing conference or respond to requests from the Secretary or the Commission. The judge found that Schimenti abandoned its contest and affirmed two serious electrical…
McWane, Inc. Dba Atlantic States Cast Iron & Pipe
Abatement petitions resolved
McWane filed two petitions seeking modification of OSHA abatement requirements. After negotiations, the company withdrew its requests concerning several citation items in both dockets. The judge granted the remaining request in docket 03-1450, adjusting the abatement date for Citation 2, Item 2 to…
MJP Construction Co., Inc.
Citations affirmed after case abandoned
OSHA cited MJP Construction after inspecting a Hoboken, New Jersey worksite. MJP's counsel reported that the company had gone out of business and would no longer defend the case. The judge treated the complaint's allegations as admitted and affirmed a serious stairway violation with a $2,000…
Sanderson Farms, Inc. (Processing Division)
Party name corrected in settlement order
Sanderson Farms and the Secretary settled a contested serious citation. The settlement vacated, reclassified, amended, and affirmed citation items according to the parties' stipulation, assessed a $250 penalty, and allowed the company to withdraw its contest. The Commission directed review to…
Noble Drilling, Inc.
OSHA jurisdiction upheld, citations vacated
Noble Drilling was converting an offshore drilling unit at a Mississippi shipyard after surrendering its Coast Guard certificate of inspection. An electronics technician died after attempting to descend structural supports inside a disabled elevator shaft, and OSHA cited fixed-ladder, illumination…
Galluzzo Equipment & Excavating, Inc.
Most excavation violations affirmed
Galluzzo Equipment & Excavating installed a concrete catch basin and pipe in a street excavation in Lodi, New Jersey. The judge affirmed serious violations involving trench-safety training, the lack of a competent person, missing hard hats, an unsecured pneumatic-hose coupling, an unprotected spoil…
ConAgra Beef Company
Platform fall-protection citation vacated
ConAgra Beef Company used mechanized platforms to split suspended beef carcasses at its Cactus, Texas plant. OSHA alleged that employees on three platforms lacked fall protection, and two compliance officers testified that they saw one employee working without using the provided tether. The judge…
Kit Carson Apartments, LLC; Helten Enterprises, LLC; and Ronald Helten
EAJA fee request denied
Kit Carson Apartments sought $55,065 in attorney fees and $1,091.62 in expenses after the underlying asbestos case was dismissed against it under a settlement identifying Helten Enterprises as the employer. The judge found that Kit Carson Apartments was eligible for an award and was a prevailing…
Belrose Fire Supression, Inc.
Late notice of contest dismissed
OSHA mailed Belrose Fire Suppression a citation that the company received on November 25, 2002. Belrose did not file its notice of contest by the December 17 deadline and instead filed on January 28, 2003. The judge found that OSHA used proper certified-mail procedures and that the citation itself…
N. Picco & Sons Contracting Co., Inc.
Scaffold and housekeeping violations affirmed
N. Picco & Sons was constructing a three-story addition to a school in Bronxville, New York. OSHA observed two employees working 36 and 42 feet above ground on a scaffold with improper fall-arrest anchorage, incomplete planking, an excessive gap from the building, and no suitable access. The judge…
New River Electrical Corp.
Energized-line clearance citations vacated
New River Electrical was installing energized utility lines in Ohio when an experienced journeyman lineman died after his bare hand held a grounded neutral line and his upper body contacted an energized metal fitting. OSHA cited two electrical-clearance provisions. The judge held that the…
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.