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. W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Company
Secretary of Labor v. W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Company (FMSHRC SE 2023-0094): Hot-work fire citation affirmed
Yates was cutting steel in a phosphate mine building when hot slag entered an uncovered drain and ignited a rubber-lined discharge pipe. The fire burned for about 17 minutes, produced thick black smoke, and required the mine rescue team to extinguish it after six fire extinguishers proved…
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Morton Salt, Inc. (FMSHRC CENT 2022-0176): Review petition withdrawn
An administrative law judge removed the significant and substantial designations from two MSHA citations issued to Morton Salt. The Commission granted the Secretary of Labor's petition to review that ruling and later heard oral argument. The Secretary then asked to withdraw the petition, and Morton…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Co.
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Co. (FMSHRC PENN 2021-0084): Two S&S citations affirmed
MSHA cited Consol's Bailey Mine for a missing keeper pin on a longwall shield and cracked light globes on a continuous miner. The Commission held that substantial evidence supported the judge's findings that the missing pin created a projectile hazard and the cracked globes could contribute to a…
Secretary of Labor v. Nally & Hamilton Enterprises, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Nally & Hamilton Enterprises, Inc. (FMSHRC KENT 2022-0079): Highwall examination ruling reversed
A tree fell from above a surface mine highwall onto a truck traveling below, killing one miner and seriously injuring another. MSHA alleged that Nally & Hamilton's on-shift examinations failed to identify, report, and correct the tree hazard, but the judge vacated the order because the land above…
Secretary of Labor v. Genesis Alkali, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Genesis Alkali, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2022-0189): Unsupported settlements remained denied
A judge rejected proposed settlements covering 34 citations because major modifications and vacaturs lacked enough factual support. One proposal would have reduced a ventilation citation from S&S and fatal gravity to non-S&S and lost-workdays gravity, with a penalty cut from $12,007 to $729…
Secretary of Labor v. Bluestone Oil Corporation
Secretary of Labor v. Bluestone Oil Corporation (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0176): Unsupported S&S removals rejected
Bluestone Oil’s proposed settlement covered twenty-four citations and would have reduced total penalties from $51,023 to $30,500. It also would have removed the significant-and-substantial designations from two citations without providing a factual justification. The Administrative Law Judge denied…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Gateway North Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Gateway North Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2023-0139): Roof-control order affirmed and citation modified
MSHA issued an order and a citation after two separate roof falls at Peabody's underground coal mine struck miners in December 2022. For the first incident, the Judge found that Peabody exceeded width limits in its approved roof-control plan and failed to take added measures for visible adverse…
Secretary of Labor v. W.G. Yates & Son’s Construction Company
Secretary of Labor v. W.G. Yates & Son’s Construction Company (FMSHRC SE 2023-0094): Hot-work fire citation affirmed before Commission review
W.G. Yates was cutting steel in a phosphate mine building when hot slag entered an uncovered drain and ignited rubber lining inside a discharge pipe. The fire burned for about 17 minutes, produced thick black smoke, and resisted six fire extinguishers before the mine's emergency team put it out…
Secretary of Labor v. Geneva Rock Products, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Geneva Rock Products, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2022-0097): Indefinite criminal-investigation stay was vacated
This penalty case followed a fatal ground-collapse accident involving a haul truck at Geneva Rock's Hansen Pit, with MSHA proposing $381,500 for one citation and three orders. The ALJ stayed the civil case indefinitely while the Department of Justice considered a parallel criminal investigation…
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Greenbrier Minerals, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2022-0403): Unsupported S&S removal rejected
Greenbrier and the Secretary proposed settling six citations, including removal of the significant-and-substantial designation from a citation alleging an inoperable emergency stop switch on a feeder breaker. That change would also have reduced the proposed penalty from $1,593 to $302. The…
Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Knight Hawk Coal, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2021-0160): Unsupported S&S removal rejected
Knight Hawk and the Secretary proposed settling three citations by removing the significant-and-substantial designation from two and reducing total penalties from $7,960 to $4,590. The ALJ accepted the explanation for one removal but found inadequate support for removing S&S from a roof-control…
Canyon Fuel Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor
Canyon Fuel Company, LLC v. Secretary of Labor (FMSHRC WEST 2024-0152): Expedited review of ventilation order denied
Canyon Fuel contested a section 104(d)(2) withdrawal order alleging that two converted mine seals lacked discharge pipes required by the approved ventilation plan. The company sought an expedited hearing, arguing that the plan language resulted from a mutual mistake and that prompt review would…
Secretary of Labor v. American Soda, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. American Soda, LLC (FMSHRC WEST 2020-0278): Tie left 15-minute reporting citation and penalty standing
A roof fall struck miner Delbert Hauser, knocked off his hard hat, caused a head wound and serious eye injury, and knocked him to the ground. American Soda did not notify MSHA within 15 minutes because Hauser remained conscious, walked out of the mine, and appeared coherent to coworkers with…
Secretary of Labor v. CONSOL Mining Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. CONSOL Mining Company, LLC (FMSHRC WEVA 2023-0141): Judge could not strike settlement arguments
A Judge denied a settlement motion without reviewing the agreement and struck the Secretary's argument and supporting Commission cases. The Commission held that presenting those authorities did not violate its procedural rules and that striking them could prevent the Secretary from preserving…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0011): Escapeway obstruction citation affirmed
Six pressurized hoses from a pump car protruded into the secondary escapeway at Consol's Enlow Fork Mine. The judge found that the hoses narrowed and obstructed the path used with the escapeway lifeline and could impede miners, including a disabled miner on a stretcher, during an emergency…
Secretary of Labor v. Iron Cumberland, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Iron Cumberland, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2022-0084): Combustible-accumulation settlement approved
The settlement covered two specially assessed section 104(d)(2) orders for extensive combustible-material accumulations along the Cumberland Mine’s 6 Mains West No. 1 belt. The first order identified ten locations, including material contacting moving rollers and one smoking accumulation; the…
Secretary of Labor v. Rulon Harper Construction, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Rulon Harper Construction, Inc. (FMSHRC WEST 2022-0249): Proposed 83 percent penalty reduction rejected for thin factual support
Rulon Harper Construction operated a sand-and-gravel pit near Salt Lake City where MSHA cited an unchocked truck on a grade and an inadequate workplace examination that missed 20 violative conditions. The parties proposed reducing the combined penalties from $22,944 to $3,936, removing both…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC and Secretary of Labor v. Michael Butler
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC and Michael Butler (FMSHRC LAKE 2019-0023): Energized drilling in high methane affirmed
A drill breached old mine workings at Peabody's Francisco Mine, releasing methane that repeatedly exceeded the drill's two-percent shutdown point and registered at least five percent on personal detectors. Mine manager Michael Butler allowed miners to keep an energized drill operating for about…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2021-0047): Unguarded belt drive citation affirmed as S&S
CONSOL Pennsylvania Coal Company operates the Harvey Mine, an underground coal mine in Pennsylvania. MSHA cited the company after an inspector found that a moving belt drive roller beside a narrow wooden walkway had no guard in front of it. Judge Alan G. Paez found that miners could use the walkway…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2021-0046): Shield-pin and mine-map citations modified
CONSOL Pennsylvania Coal Company operates the Enlow Fork underground coal mine in Pennsylvania. The company conceded that four longwall shields were missing keeper pins, but Judge Jacqueline R. Bulluck found that the Secretary did not prove the missing pins were reasonably likely to let…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2019-0008): Cable violation upheld but S&S designation vacated
MSHA cited CONSOL Pennsylvania Coal Company after an inspector found cuts in an energized feeder cable at the Enlow Fork Mine. The Commission affirmed the judge's finding that the cable was not adequately insulated and fully protected, and it upheld moderate negligence. It vacated the significant…
Secretary of Labor v. Solar Sources Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Solar Sources Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2017-0099): Berm penalty reduced to $40,000
Solar Sources Mining violated the berm standard at a surface coal mine after a haul truck went over a dumpsite edge and the driver was injured while escaping. The citation's S&S, unwarrantable-failure, high-negligence, and serious-gravity findings were no longer disputed; the appeal concerned the…
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Consol Pennsylvania Coal Company, LLC (FMSHRC PENN 2018-0169): Three serious-hazard findings affirmed
Consol Pennsylvania Coal did not dispute three violations at the Harvey Mine but challenged whether they were significant and substantial. One violation involved missing reflectorized signs required to warn miners about unsupported roof, and two involved badly damaged hoisting cables left available…
Secretary of Labor v. The Monongalia County Coal Company
Secretary of Labor v. The Monongalia County Coal Company (FMSHRC WEVA 2015-0509, WEVA 2015-0632): Unwarrantable-failure settlement approved
The Commission had granted review of findings involving combustible belt-line accumulations and a related preshift-examination violation at Monongalia County Coal's underground mine. The parties settled by reinstating unwarrantable-failure designations on both orders while the Secretary abandoned…
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Peabody Midwest Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2017-0450): Refuge-chamber penalty reduced on remand
Peabody Midwest violated its emergency response plan by placing one refuge chamber in the direct line of sight of the working face. On review of an earlier ALJ ruling, the Commission removed the significant-and-substantial designation because more than 15 miners were present only during shift…
Secretary of Labor v. Solar Sources Mining, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Solar Sources Mining, LLC (FMSHRC LAKE 2017-0099): Berm penalty vacated and remanded
Solar Sources Mining was cited after a haul truck went through a deficient berm at a surface mine and overturned 47 feet below, while the driver escaped with serious foot and ankle injuries. The judge affirmed the berm violation as S&S, high negligence, and an unwarrantable failure, then assessed…
Secretary of Labor v. Superior Silica Sands, LLC
Secretary of Labor v. Superior Silica Sands, LLC (FMSHRC CENT 2019-0133): Railcar violations assessed at $44,786
A newly hired electrician with no railcar experience was fatally injured after two uncoupled railcars began rolling and he attempted to set a handbrake on a moving car. Judge Margaret Miller found that Superior Silica Sands had not adequately trained him on railcar hazards, braking, communication…
Secretary of Labor v. Sunbelt Rentals, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Sunbelt Rentals, Inc. (FMSHRC VA 2013-0291 M): Examination violation affirmed and penalty remanded
A Sunbelt employee was injured by material falling inside a cement-plant preheat vessel after the company's examiner inspected the upper compartment only from portholes one floor below. The Commission affirmed that the entire vessel was a working place and that an adequate examination required…
Secretary of Labor v. Hoover Excavating & Trucking, Inc., and its successors and Secretary of Labor v. Reginald S. Hoover, employed by Hoover Excavating & Trucking, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Hoover Excavating & Trucking, Inc. and Reginald S. Hoover (FMSHRC WEST 2019-0277): Blasting violations and agent liability affirmed
A blast detonated prematurely at Hoover Excavating's surface stone mine while eight miners remained in the pit area, and three miners were seriously injured by flyrock and debris. Judge Margaret A. Miller found that mine owner Reginald Hoover ignored the initiating device's warning not to connect…
Secretary of Labor v. Yahara Materials, Inc.
Secretary of Labor v. Yahara Materials, Inc. (FMSHRC LAKE 2019-0025): Dump-site berm citation settled for $286
MSHA cited Yahara Materials for failing to provide a berm at a dump site and proposed a $2,361 penalty. In settlement, the operator asserted that a spotter and berms were present, while the Secretary declined to provide requested inspection photographs. Judge Thomas P. McCarthy approved 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.