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.

5,593 decisions and counting · Latest decision July 17, 2026
9 decisions 29 C.F.R. § 1910.157(d)(3)(iv)

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COMM

Poughkeepsie Yacht Club, Inc.

Four safety items affirmed without penalties

Poughkeepsie Yacht Club was a nonprofit boating club with one paid employee, a fuel pump, boat storage, and docks on the Hudson River. An Administrative Law Judge affirmed four items involving fire-extinguisher tags, a no-smoking sign, gangway guarding, and ladder rungs, classifying the gangway…

September 17, 1979
Citations affirmed
COMM

Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific Railroad Company

Railroad exemption and bankruptcy defenses rejected

OSHA cited the railroad after inspections at its Kansas City and Joliet workplaces, and the company argued that Department of Transportation authority displaced OSHA jurisdiction and that a bankruptcy injunction barred the proceedings. The Commission held that the statutory exemption for another…

November 14, 1975
Mixed result
COMM

Illinois Central Gulf Railroad Co.

Forty-six citation items vacated as untimely

OSHA cited 46 alleged safety, health, recordkeeping, and posting violations at Illinois Central Gulf Railroad's locomotive repair facility in Paducah, Kentucky. The inspection was coordinated with the Federal Railroad Administration, and the proposed citation moved through regional and national…

March 19, 1975
Citations vacated
COMM

Union Pacific Railroad Company

Five repair-shop items affirmed

OSHA cited eight conditions in Union Pacific's Cheyenne machine and wheel shops. The Commission affirmed five items involving missing crane load markings, uncaged access ladders, absent crane inspections, uninspected fire extinguishers, and missing extinguisher maintenance tags, with $295 in…

November 26, 1974
Mixed result
COMM

St. Paul Feed & Supply, Inc.

Penalty-only contest leaves citations final

St. Paul Feed & Supply received one serious and 17 nonserious citation items at its Oregon agricultural-products facility. Its notice of contest identified only the proposed penalties. The Commission held that this limited notice left the citations and their abatement periods as final orders, so…

October 2, 1974
Modified
COMM

Muriel Manufacturing Company

Penalties for garment-shop violations affirmed

Muriel Manufacturing Company operated a contract garment-sewing shop where OSHA cited housekeeping, stairway, exit, fire-extinguisher, machine-guarding, electrical, posting, and recordkeeping conditions. The employer admitted 12 nonserious violations, while two abrasive-wheel items were vacated by…

July 26, 1974
Citations affirmed
COMM

F. H. Von Damm, Inc.

Three non-serious items and $35 penalty affirmed

F. H. Von Damm was a small wholesaler of animal feed, seeds, and agricultural supplies. The judge affirmed violations for failing to post the OSHA notice, failing to inspect two fire extinguishers annually, and lacking a maintenance tag on another extinguisher. He assessed $35 for the…

May 23, 1974
Mixed result
COMM

American Motors Corporation

Welding-ventilation item vacated and $254 assessed

OSHA cited American Motors for 29 non-serious conditions at its Milwaukee automobile plant. After withdrawals, admissions, and a hearing, the administrative law judge affirmed 17 items, vacated 12, and assessed $279. Commission review focused on a welding station where no mechanical ventilation was…

July 2, 1973
Mixed result
COMM

Frankford Woolen Mills, Inc.

Tenant floor-load item vacated and $335 assessed

Frankford Woolen Mills was cited for 24 non-serious conditions involving housekeeping, stairs, ladders, exits, eye protection, fire extinguishers, machinery, compressed air, welding equipment, electrical grounding, and aisles. The administrative law judge affirmed 19 items, vacated five, and…

June 13, 1973
Mixed result

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.