Federal Labor Guidance
Free plain-English summaries of opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices from the U.S. Department of Labor, with the current status and the official source on every page.
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FY 2014 sequestration of federal UI programs
ETA explained to state agencies how potential FY 2014 sequestration would be applied to mandatory unemployment programs, including Emergency Unemployment Compensation and Extended Benefits. The…
Hazard labels on small reference-standard vials
A reference-standard distributor asked to put only some hazard warnings on tiny chemical vials and direct users to online safety data sheets for the rest. OSHA said that proposal did not meet the…
Disaster unemployment assistance amounts for late 2013
ETA sent state agencies a table of 50 percent of each state’s average weekly unemployment benefit, rounded for use as the minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly amount. The figures covered…
WOTC requests for Empowerment Zone residents
ETA explained the 2013 nomination extension for Empowerment Zones and when state agencies could process WOTC certification requests for the summer youth and designated community resident groups. The…
Hazard labels on small adhesive containers
An adhesive maker asked whether a small tube or syringe could carry only selected hazard-label elements when full labeling was difficult. OSHA rejected that proposal and described a narrower…
Benefit accuracy investigations and coding
ETA updated the Benefit Accuracy Measurement handbook with standards for exhausting attempts to obtain claimant information and coding errors when claimants do not respond. It directed state BAM…
FY 2014 funds for EUC sequestration changes
ETA notified states that supplemental funds were available through the budget request process for implementation costs of FY 2014 sequestration changes in Emergency Unemployment Compensation. The…
Summary prospectus delivery under mutual-fund exemption
A requester asked whether giving a mutual fund’s SEC summary prospectus to a second plan fiduciary meets an ERISA prohibited transaction exemption’s prospectus delivery condition. EBSA said it does…
Using Form MA 8-7 to send state UI materials
ETA reminded state agencies to use Form MA 8-7 when sending proposed and enacted unemployment laws and other materials to the Department for federal review. It announced an OMB extension of approval…
Native American workforce credential pilot
ETA announced a one-year pilot study of credential attainment among Workforce Investment Act Section 166 Indian and Native American adult program participants. It defined credentials, used quarterly…
Veterans Retraining Assistance Program outreach and reporting
ETA replaced TEGL 8-12 with updated instructions for outreach to Veterans Retraining Assistance Program participants, employment assistance after completion or termination, and reporting outcomes.…
Workforce Investment Act performance reporting system
ETA revised the Workforce Investment Act performance reporting system for program year 2013. States were to submit quarterly participant records through a consolidated system that generated…
2013 significant farmworker and bilingual job centers
ETA designated American Job Centers with significant migrant and seasonal farmworker activity and bilingual service needs for program year 2013. It described those centers' responsibilities and…
OSHA hazard communication and MSHA HazCom compliance
MSHA explains how OSHA’s revised chemical hazard communication standard relates to its existing HazCom requirements. MSHA says operators compliant with the OSHA standard are also compliant with the…
Completing 2013 UI benefit accuracy data
ETA set dates and procedures for states to complete and verify 2013 Benefit Accuracy Measurement paid and denied claims cases before federal publication of improper payment data. It also amended a…
Veterans entered employment performance threshold
ETA explained the uniform national threshold entered employment rate for veterans and eligible persons in Wagner-Peyser Employment Service and Jobs for Veterans State Grants. It gave calculation and…
Two-page WOTC individual characteristics form
ETA corrected the April 2013 edition of WOTC Form 9061, which had inadvertently expanded to three pages. It provided a two-page replacement form without substantive changes and supplemented TEGL…
Employer payment for protective body armor
A union asked whether bullet-resistant or stab-resistant vests count as personal protective equipment under OSHA’s rules. OSHA said that if an employer selects body armor to protect workers from…
FY 2013 grants for UI integrity and systems
ETA described FY 2013 supplemental funds for states to prevent improper unemployment payments, improve program performance and modernize information systems. The letter sets required strategies,…
FY 2014 state UI resource planning targets
ETA sent state agencies preliminary FY 2014 funding and staff year targets for unemployment administration, with the data inputs and allocation methods used to calculate them. The letter and…
FY 2013 foreign labor certification grant planning
ETA instructed state workforce agencies on funding and management of fiscal year 2013 foreign labor certification grants. It required grant applications within 30 days absent an approved extension…
Radio interference with electric blasting circuits
Coal mines using radio based communication or tracking devices must account for possible interference with electric blasting circuits. MSHA says operators should consider the total radio energy from…
Revenue sharing credits and ERISA plan assets
A retirement-plan service provider asked whether revenue sharing payments it receives from investments are client plan assets. EBSA said bookkeeping credits were not plan assets before receipt on…
Planning the FY 2014 state UI service plan
ETA gave state unemployment agencies supplemental instructions for their FY 2014 State Quality Service Plans. The letter identifies national priorities, performance measures and planning…
Video promoting electronic UI information exchange
ETA told state agencies that a messaging video was available to help explain the State Information Data Exchange System and its E-Response service to employers and third-party administrators. The…
2013 WIA Section 166 youth and adult allotments
ETA notified Workforce Investment Act Section 166 grantees of final 2013 allotments for Supplemental Youth Services and Comprehensive Services programs and gave instructions for obtaining the funds.…
Allowable construction credentials for YouthBuild
ETA clarified its definition of a credential for YouthBuild grantees and discussed three commonly used construction credentials. It identified full-curriculum completion of NCCER, HBI-PACT and MC3…
Remote restart of coal mine conveyor belts
MSHA explains the fire hazard that can follow a coal mine conveyor belt slipping against a drive roller. It says local inspection and restart are safest, but remote restart can be done under…
Identification numbers for portable coal mining operations
MSHA explains legal identity reporting for portable coal auger and highwall operations. Each machine receives a seven digit mine ID that follows it when moved between districts, and operators must…
Intermediate rail strength under former guardrail rule
A tank-industry consultant asked whether a smaller intermediate steel guardrail member complied with the then-current rule. OSHA said the described rail missed an old bending-strength detail but…
Methane tests at the coal mining face
MSHA clarifies methane testing at the working face during underground coal mine operations, including roof bolting. It describes when on shift tests are required and how extendable probes or other…
Emergency stops for connected mining equipment
MSHA explains that mobile bridge carriers connected to continuous miners form a single haulage system for the cited emergency stop rule. Each component needs a switch that simultaneously de…
Coal mine machinery repair and maintenance
MSHA explains the coal mine rule requiring power to be off and machinery blocked against motion before repair or maintenance, except when motion is needed for adjustment. The letter defines…
2011 WIA performance incentive grant application
ETA updated the application process for Workforce Investment Act Section 503 incentive grants based on program year 2011 performance. Qualifying states had to submit assurances, proposed uses,…
Revised WOTC reporting and processing forms
ETA transmitted revised Work Opportunity Tax Credit reporting and processing forms and instructions after the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. It addressed state certification procedures and…
Union-officer pension plan and collective-bargaining status
A union-officer pension plan asked whether it qualified as a collectively bargained multiemployer plan under ERISA. EBSA said the material supplied did not show a bona fide collective bargaining…
Program year 2013 WIA youth guidance
ETA gave states and local workforce areas program year 2013 guidance for Workforce Investment Act youth activities. It addressed service strategies for out-of-school youth, work experience,…
Blood contamination in metalworking fluids
A machining trade group asked whether ordinary lathe and mill work exposes operators to bloodborne pathogens if a worker could be cut. OSHA said the rule applies when contact with blood is…
Disaster unemployment assistance amounts for summer 2013
ETA sent state agencies a table of 50 percent of each state’s average weekly unemployment benefit, rounded for use as the minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance weekly amount. The figures covered…
FY 2013 state UI resource allocations
ETA gave states their FY 2013 unemployment administration base allocations and guidance on above-base funding and supplemental budget requests. Its attachment supplies state allocation figures. ETA…
Revised UI benefits data validation handbook
ETA transmitted a revised benefits portion of Employment and Training Handbook 361, which state unemployment agencies use to validate data they report to the federal government. The letter…
OSHA guidance on heavy manual lifting
A worker asked whether OSHA sets a maximum weight for lifting at work. OSHA said it has no standard setting a fixed lifting or carrying limit, and weight alone does not determine back-injury risk.…
Hazard labels on small chemical reference containers
A federal standards laboratory asked whether tiny chemical reference containers could use a numbered key or rely on labels on outer packaging. OSHA said no under the 2012 rule: required hazard…
National Farmworker Jobs Program reporting requirements
ETA updated National Farmworker Jobs Program reporting requirements and forms for budget, planning, program status, housing assistance, and participant records. It also required a grant plan…
Cutting bit maintenance and methane ignition
MSHA says continuous miners and longwall shearers operating with damaged or missing cutting bits or holding lugs violate the safe equipment rule. Replacing the parts reduces sparks that can ignite…
Social Security number limits in state UI work
ETA advised state unemployment agencies that federal law bars Social Security numbers, including masked derivatives, from appearing on government payment checks. It also bars agencies from using…
FY 2013 TAA state allocations and reserve requests
ETA explained the formula for fiscal year 2013 initial Trade Adjustment Assistance program allocations to states and the procedure to request reserve funds. It attached the state distribution…
FY 2013 WOTC state funding allotments
ETA distributed final fiscal year 2013 state funding allotments to administer the Work Opportunity Tax Credit through September 30, 2013. It explained allocation and grant conditions and attached…
2011 TAA operating instructions, Change 2
ETA answered state agency questions about operating instructions in TEGL 10-11 for the 2011 Trade Adjustment Assistance amendments. Its questions and answers clarified implementation for affected…
Electronic delivery of safety data sheets
A diagnostic-products maker asked whether placing safety data sheets on its website and including a card with each shipment met the delivery rule. OSHA said the proposed arrangement did not satisfy…
2013 Workforce Information Grants to States
ETA gave states program year 2013 policy, application, and funding instructions for Workforce Information Grants to States. It specified labor market information deliverables and attached formula…
2013 SCSEP planning and allotments
ETA gave Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees application instructions, procedures, and allotments for program year 2013. It attached funding tables, assurances, and planning…
WIA and Wagner-Peyser funds administration flexibility
ETA explained administrative flexibility available to state and local Workforce Investment Act Title I and Wagner-Peyser programs, including waiver-related options and grant fund management. It…
FY 2013 UI reemployment assessment grants
ETA invited state agencies to apply for FY 2013 grants to start or continue unemployment reemployment and eligibility assessment programs. It sets program design, proposal, funding and reporting…
2013 WIA and Wagner-Peyser performance goals
ETA gave states guidelines for negotiating program year 2013 Workforce Investment Act Title IB and Wagner-Peyser performance goals, including schedules and data for negotiations. It rescinded TEGL…
2013 WIA and Wagner-Peyser state allotments
ETA announced program year 2013 allotments for Workforce Investment Act adult, dislocated worker, and youth programs, Wagner-Peyser Employment Service, and Workforce Information Grants to States. It…
2013 WOTC reauthorization and veteran groups
ETA told state workforce agencies how the 2012 tax law retroactively reauthorized Work Opportunity Tax Credit non-veteran groups and continued veteran groups under the VOW to Hire Heroes Act. It…
Egg processing and the agricultural exemption
WHD said egg-processing work generally loses the FLSA agricultural exemption when eggs come from another farm, processing resembles manufacturing, or the operation is independent of the farmer’s own…
Chemical hazards in radioactive laboratory standards
A laboratory asked whether shipped nuclear standards need OSHA chemical labels and safety data sheets. OSHA said radiation hazards themselves are excluded from the hazard-communication rule, but any…
Reissued UI benefit accuracy operations guide
ETA reissued the third edition of Employment and Training Operations Guide 400 for state Benefit Accuracy Measurement work. The letter directs users to replace the previous edition, and the…
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These are official interpretive documents from the U.S. Department of Labor: opinion letters answering questions from employers and workers, administrative policies, and interpretive notices. They show how the agency applies wage-and-hour and workplace law to real situations, but they are guidance, not statutes or court decisions, and the agency can supersede or withdraw them. Every page above shows the document's current status, when that status was last verified, and a link to the official source.