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.
No decisions match these filters
Try a different search term or clear the filters.
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2015-339): Three citations vacated and guarding penalty reduced
Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company settled 16 of 20 citations from its Bailey Mine and tried four involving rock dust, two conveyor-guarding conditions, and an allegedly obstructed escapeway. The Judge vacated the rock-dust citation because the Secretary did not prove that the noncompliant sample was…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2015-339): Original mixed citation ruling
This is the original release of the Bailey Mine decision that vacated three citations and modified a fourth guarding citation to non-S&S with low negligence and a $150 penalty. The Judge found that MSHA had not reliably established the location of a rock-dust sample, that an unlatched area-guarding…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Co., LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Co., LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2016-132): Uncertain sample location defeated rock-dust citation
MSHA cited Consol Pennsylvania Coal after a sample from the Harvey Mine contained less incombustible material than the rock-dust standard required. The standard did not require rock dusting within 40 feet of the working face, so the sample's location determined whether a violation existed. The…
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review, an ALJ decision becomes a final order under 29 U.S.C. § 661(j): it binds the parties in that case but is not binding precedent in other cases.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.