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. The American Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 2008-666): $80,000 assessed after Commission remand
On remand, Judge Richard W. Manning set penalties for an accumulation order under 30 C.F.R. § 75.400 and an on-shift examination order under 30 C.F.R. § 75.363(b). The Commission had reversed an earlier judge and found that both violations involved unwarrantable failure, high negligence, and a…
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 2008-666, et al.): Unwarrantable findings restored for belt hazards
Three orders at American Coal's Galatia Mine involved energized electrical work, extensive combustible accumulations along a belt, and failure to record hazardous conditions during on-shift examinations. The Commission affirmed the judge's treatment of the electrical violation as S&S and highly…
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2014-746): Belt accumulations and vague examination record upheld
MSHA found extensive coal accumulations along Mach Mining's 3,600-foot slope belt, including six locations where coal contacted rollers or the moving belt. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy affirmed the accumulation violation as significant and substantial and highly negligent because frictional heat could…
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Mach Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2014-746): Original decision on slope belt accumulations and the examination record
MSHA cited Mach Mining for coal dust and loose coal built up along the 3,600-foot slope belt at its Mach No. 1 Mine in Illinois, including places where coal was touching rollers or the moving belt, and separately for a pre-shift examination record that noted only that the slope belt needed…
Secretary of Labor v. The Ohio Valley Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The Ohio Valley Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 2015-251, et al.): Coal-dust and examination orders affirmed for $14,536
An MSHA inspector found extensive black coal dust and fines along the South Mains belt at Ohio Valley Coal's Powhatan No. 6 Mine, including compacted material around the turning tail roller. MSHA issued one order for prohibited accumulations and another because the on-shift examiner had not…
Secretary of Labor v. Oak Grove Resources, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Oak Grove Resources, LLC (FMSHRC SE 2013-301, et al.): Twenty-four citations resolved for $104,436
Four consolidated Oak Grove Resources dockets involved 24 citations and orders, including coal-dust accumulations, pre-shift examinations, and conveyor-belt maintenance. Judge Jerold Feldman approved settlement of 19 matters for $54,188. Of the five litigated matters, he affirmed a belt-maintenance…
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The American Coal Company (FMSHRC LAKE 2008-666, et al.): Five orders modified and flagrant findings removed
MSHA alleged five serious violations at American Coal's large, methane-liberating Galatia Mine involving energized electrical work, unsupported roof and ribs, inadequate preshift and on-shift examinations, and extensive belt-line combustible accumulations. Senior Judge Michael E. Zielinski upheld…
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.