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 v. Rex Coal Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Rex Coal Company, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2010-956, et al.): Fire-reporting and preshift violations affirmed
A foreman discovered an underground fire while only one other miner was working below ground, searched for that miner, and did not notify MSHA within the required 15 minutes. MSHA also found from the foreman's gas-detector data that he could not have completed the recorded preshift methane and…
American Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor
American Coal Company v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC LAKE 2010-408-R X, et al.): Smoldering stockpile held a reportable mine fire
MSHA issued a section 103(k) order after inspectors observed smoking and smoldering areas, heat waves, white ash, and a sulfur odor on American Coal's surface stockpile, then cited the operator for not reporting the event within 15 minutes. On second remand, Judge Margaret A. Miller held that the…
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 2010-408-R): A mine fire need not have visible flames
MSHA issued a section 103(k) control order after inspectors observed smoke, ash, heat waves, and the smell of burning coal at five locations on a large stockpile, although they saw no flames. The ALJ vacated the order because he read "mine fire" to require a flame. A Commission majority reversed…
Secretary of Labor v. Highland Mining Company LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Highland Mining Company LLC (FMSHRC KENT 2011-97): Four belt and noise violations upheld
Highland Mining contested four citations involving its No. 4 unit, conceding two underlying violations but disputing their gravity and negligence. Judge William B. Moran upheld an S&S citation for a misaligned conveyor belt rubbing six warm frames and an S&S noise citation after a continuous-miner…
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.