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. Mach Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2014-746): Coal-accumulation and examination-record violations affirmed
MSHA found extensive loose-coal accumulations along Mach Mining's 3,500-foot slope belt, including six locations where coal contacted the belt or rollers. The mine's examination book said only that the slope belt needed cleaning and that work was in progress. The Commission affirmed both the…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2011-0277): Four mine-safety violations modified and $76,000 assessed
Peabody Midwest Mining contested four violations at its Francisco underground coal mine involving loose roof rock, entries wider than its approved roof control plan allowed, inadequate on-shift examinations, and an inoperative carbon monoxide sensor. Judge Richard W. Manning affirmed each…
Secretary of Labor v. Paul D. Bentley, employed by Bledsoe Coal Corporation
Secretary of Labor v. Paul D. Bentley (FMSHRC KENT 2013-307): Individual charges dismissed after fatal rib fall
A miner was fatally crushed by a large rib rock at Bledsoe Coal's mine, and MSHA charged first-shift foreman Paul Bentley individually for knowingly authorizing roof-control and examination violations. After hearing the Secretary's case, Judge William B. Moran found that government witnesses did…
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review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j): it binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent in other cases.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.