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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Cedar Construction Company
Two willful trench violations merged into one with a $4,750 penalty
Cedar Construction Company excavated trenches and installed utility sewer pipe for the City of Lincoln, Nebraska. Two employees were working in a 14-to-15-foot-deep trench when part of a wall collapsed, fatally injuring one employee. The Commission found that the trench had water and unstable soil…
Anchor Construction Co.
Amended trench citation affirmed with a $400 penalty
Anchor Construction employees worked in an 11-foot-deep trench dug in clay soil with water entering it. Evidence showed sloughing at the bottom, a cracked wall, and soil that would not support weight without extra protection. The Commission allowed the Secretary to replace the originally cited…
Bayside Pipe Coaters, Inc.
Subcontractor remains responsible for its trench crew
Bayside Pipe Coaters sent a foreman and two employees to waterproof pipe in a trench excavated by a general contractor. The company admitted that the trench, spoil-pile, and compressed-gas-cylinder conditions violated OSHA standards but argued that its contract made the general contractor solely…
Frank Irey, Jr., Inc.
Willful trench violation and $5,335 total penalties affirmed
Frank Irey performed underground electrical-conduit work in a trench about seven-and-one-half feet deep. The trench was not shored or sloped in soft or unstable material, and an employee died when a side collapsed. The administrative law judge classified the trench violation as willful because 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review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j): it binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent in other cases.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.