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. Oil-Dri Production Company
Secretary of Labor v. Oil-Dri Production Company (FMSHRC SE 2015-285, SE 2015-418): Housekeeping and equipment citations produced $12,483 penalty
MSHA issued 14 citations at Oil-Dri's Mississippi clay-processing mine, principally for housekeeping accumulations, dust-truck defects, inadequate lighting, and a missed workplace examination. Judge L. Zane Gill vacated the fire-extinguisher-record citation, recorded Oil-Dri's acceptance of a…
Secretary of Labor v. LRock Industries
Secretary of Labor v. LRock Industries (FMSHRC WEST 2016-705): One citation vacated and total penalties reduced to $20,585
LRock Industries operated a surface sand and gravel pit where MSHA issued 19 citations involving berms, equipment defects, guarding, electrical safety, labeling, workplace examinations, and fall protection. Judge Margaret A. Miller affirmed most of the violations, including significant and…
Secretary of Labor v. John Richards Construction
Secretary of Labor v. John Richards Construction (FMSHRC WEST 2014-440 M, WEST 2015-101 M): Entry refusal affirmed, extinguisher ruling remanded
John Richards Construction refused to let an MSHA inspector enter its sand and gravel mine until the owner returned to accompany him. The Commission affirmed that this was an intentional denial of MSHA's statutory right of entry, upheld high negligence, and affirmed the $1,000 penalty. A second…
Secretary of Labor v. John Richards Construction
Secretary of Labor v. John Richards Construction (FMSHRC WEST 2015-101-M): Extinguisher-record and handrail citations affirmed
MSHA cited John Richards Construction at its small Montana sand and gravel pit after the operator could not produce current fire-extinguisher inspection records and an accessible elevated walkway lacked a 23-inch section of handrail. Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck denied the operator's recusal request…
Secretary of Labor v. Jeppesen Gravel
Secretary of Labor v. Jeppesen Gravel (FMSHRC CENT 2014-298-M): Entry interference and withdrawal-order violations affirmed
Jeppesen Gravel delayed an MSHA inspection, asked a deputy sheriff to arrest the inspectors, and continued confrontational conduct during the inspection despite a federal consent judgment requiring unobstructed entry. Judge Priscilla M. Rae found intentional and reckless interference with MSHA's…
Secretary of Labor v. A Mining Group, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. A Mining Group, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2014-194-M): Overdue extinguisher inspection brings $100 penalty
An MSHA inspector found one fire extinguisher at A Mining Group's limestone quarry was two months overdue for its annual inspection. Judge Priscilla M. Rae held that every extinguisher kept in service must be inspected annually, even if no regulation required the operator to place that extinguisher…
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.