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. The Monongalia County Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The Monongalia County Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-509): Flagrant and unwarrantable designations deleted
Monongalia stipulated to significant-and-substantial violations involving extensive combustible accumulations along a belt and an inadequate preshift examination, but disputed unwarrantable-failure and flagrant designations. Judge Jerold Feldman found high negligence and serious violations, yet…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2016-232, et al.): Violations upheld but six unwarrantable findings removed
MSHA issued Peabody Midwest Mining seven section 104(d)(2) orders involving loose ribs, missed or inadequate preshift examinations, and damaged or missing belt rollers at the Francisco Underground Pit. Judge William B. Moran upheld every violation, including the S&S findings for the loose-rib…
Secretary of Labor v. Paramont Coal Company Virginia LLC and Paramont Coal Company Virginia LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Secretary of Labor v. Paramont Coal Company Virginia LLC and Paramont Coal Company Virginia LLC v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC VA 2010-458, et al.): Misaligned belt found S&S on remand
Paramont's misaligned conveyor belt rubbed against metal hangers near float coal dust and wooden baffles that had begun smoldering from contact with the belt. The Commission remanded so the Judge could consider those conditions together, along with the mine's methane liberation, under continued…
Secretary of Labor v. Paramont Coal Company Virginia LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Paramont Coal Company Virginia LLC (FMSHRC VA 2010-458, et al.): Belt-fire S&S ruling vacated for ignoring baffles
MSHA cited Paramont after a misaligned conveyor belt rubbed bottom roller hangers near coal-dust accumulations and wooden ventilation baffles. The ALJ found the alignment violation but ruled it was not significant and substantial, focusing on the hangers and excluding the baffles because they had…
Secretary of Labor v. Highland Mining Co., LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Highland Mining Co., LLC (FMSHRC KENT 2013-112): Four litigated citations bring $15,096 penalty
MSHA litigated four citations against Highland Mining involving loose ribs, two misaligned conveyor belts, and an inadequate on-shift examination. Judge Kenneth R. Andrews affirmed the loose-rib violation but changed it to unlikely and non-S&S because miners traveled the area infrequently, reducing…
Big Ridge, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor
Big Ridge, Inc. v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC LAKE 2012-453-R, et al.): Mixed rulings and $309,376 total penalty
Big Ridge operated the Willow Lake Portal underground bituminous coal mine in Illinois. The consolidated cases involved roof control, combustible accumulations, ventilation controls, belt alignment, and pre-shift examinations, along with the operator's right to accompany MSHA inspectors. Judge…
Paramont Coal Company Virginia, LLC
Paramont Coal Company Virginia, LLC (FMSHRC VA 2010-369-R, VA 2010-370-R, and VA 2010-458): Dust citation upheld and one belt-abatement order vacated
MSHA cited Paramont Coal for float coal dust along a conveyor and for a misaligned belt rubbing hangers, then issued two withdrawal orders when it concluded that the conditions were not timely abated. Judge George A. Koutras affirmed both underlying violations but kept the dust citation non-S&S and…
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…
Highland Mining Company, LLC
Highland Mining Company, LLC (FMSHRC KENT 2009-1582): One citation affirmed, nine modified, and three vacated
Highland Mining admitted many of the cited conditions at its Highland 9 underground coal mine but disputed significant and substantial and unwarrantable-failure findings across thirteen litigated enforcement actions. Judge Priscilla M. Rae evaluated roof and rib hazards, belt accumulations and…
Bledsoe Coal Corporation
Bledsoe Coal Corporation (FMSHRC KENT 2011-835): Fifteen S&S violations uphold pattern designation
MSHA placed Bledsoe Coal's Abner Branch Rider Mine under a pattern-of-violations designation after a follow-up inspection produced eighteen citations marked significant and substantial. The parties agreed that MSHA needed at least nine valid S&S citations to sustain the pattern action. Judge…
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.