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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Secretary of Labor on behalf of Steve Glosson v. Lopke Quarries, Inc.
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Steve Glosson v. Lopke Quarries, Inc. (FMSHRC SE 2017-19-DM): Loader records compelled without delaying hearing
The Secretary sought discovery in Steve Glosson's discrimination case against Lopke Quarries, including service records for loaders Glosson had operated. Lopke missed extended deadlines, produced incomplete interrogatory answers, and sent unlabeled documents that did not appear to include the…
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Jeffrey Pappas v. CalPortland Company and Riverside Cement Company
Secretary of Labor on behalf of Jeffrey Pappas v. CalPortland Company and Riverside Cement Company (FMSHRC WEST 2016-264 DM): Privileged discrimination records shielded from discovery
CalPortland and Riverside Cement asked Judge Alan G. Paez to compel the Secretary to produce an MSHA interview, an email, a memorandum, and other documents from Jeffrey Pappas in his discrimination case. The judge found the motion untimely because it came after the discovery deadline and more than…
Secretary of Labor v. North American Quarry and Construction Services, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. North American Quarry and Construction Services, LLC (FMSHRC YORK 2013-212-M, et al.): Parent-company discovery compelled
The Secretary sought documents, an interrogatory answer, and a corporate deposition concerning whether North American Quarry and its parent, Austin Powder, should be treated as a unitary operator. Judge Alan G. Paez held that the requested information addressed interrelated operations, common…
Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Investments Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Warrior Investments Company, Inc. (FMSHRC SE-2014-347): Defective scoop parking brake citation affirmed
An unloaded scoop at Warrior Investments' low-coal mine rolled several feet after its parking brake was applied and stopped only when the operator lowered the bucket. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy found that the brake failed to hold the machine stationary and that normal practices of leaving scoops…
Secretary of Labor v. Kirk Fenoff & Son Excavating
Secretary of Labor v. Kirk Fenoff & Son Excavating (FMSHRC YORK 2014-28-M): Mine Act interrogatories presumptively limited to 25
Kirk Fenoff & Son initially served 64 interrogatories in a case involving two related highwall orders, then reduced the request to 39 after court-directed discussions. The Secretary sought a 25-question limit. Judge William B. Moran held that Commission procedural rules govern the scope of…
Secretary of Labor v. Cactus Canyon Quarries of Texas, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Cactus Canyon Quarries of Texas, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2013-32-M): Simplified procedure ended but hearing tightly limited
Cactus Canyon contested two $100 machine-guarding penalties and sought broader discovery than the Commission's simplified-proceedings rules ordinarily allow. Judge David F. Barbour agreed to discontinue simplified proceedings because an unwilling party's insistence on additional discovery defeated…
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.