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. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2013-385): Bleeder-water findings partly affirmed and partly remanded
MSHA cited Consol Pennsylvania Coal after deep, debris-filled water made portions of the Enlow Fork Mine's bleeder system unsafe to travel and the hazardous accumulation was not entered in the weekly examination record. The Commission unanimously affirmed that the ventilation-plan violation under…
Secretary of Labor v. Rock n Roll Coal Company, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Rock n Roll Coal Company, Inc. (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-889): All six citations and orders affirmed as written for $29,613
Rock N Roll Coal operates the underground Mine No. 7 in West Virginia. MSHA inspector Morgan issued six citations and orders across two 2015 inspections. They covered a missing directional cone on the secondary escapeway lifeline, a carbon monoxide monitor placed about 250 feet from its required…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2013-385): Bleeder-water violations affirmed with $29,116 penalty
Consol Pennsylvania Coal allowed water 12 to 42 inches deep to cover about 2,250 feet of an Enlow Fork Mine bleeder system, hiding uneven floor conditions and debris from examiners who traveled the route alone. The mine's ventilation plan required pumps to keep the bleeders safe for travel, and…
Secretary of Labor v. Signal Peak Energy, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Signal Peak Energy, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2012-1325, et al.): Four citations vacated and one order modified
Signal Peak Energy contested five enforcement actions at its Bull Mountain Mine No. 1. Judge Richard W. Manning upheld a weekly-examination order because longstanding roof hazards were not corrected immediately, but reduced the likelihood finding from highly likely to reasonably likely and assessed…
Genwal Resources, Inc., et al.
Genwal Resources, Inc., et al. (FMSHRC WEST 2008-1475): Consolidated mine settlements impose $1.15 million in penalties
The parties submitted a consolidated settlement covering citations and orders arising from the 2007 Crandall Canyon Mine fatal accidents and numerous other enforcement dockets involving four related operators. The companies admitted the Mine Act violations for purposes of the agency proceedings…
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.