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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Reclassifying cleaned open-top tanks as non-permit spaces
An employer asked if employees could enter open-top cleaning tanks without a confined-space permit after locking out the water supply. OSHA said reclassification is possible only if there is no…
2012 workforce information grants to states
ETA instructed state workforce agencies how to use program year 2012 Workforce Information Grants to produce labor market information and support workforce planning. It set required products,…
2012 state and territorial SCSEP grant applications
ETA told state and territorial Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees how to apply for program year 2012 funds. The letter lists required narratives, assurances, budget forms, service…
Private nonprofit participation in a state health plan
Connecticut asked whether allowing private nonprofit employees into its state health plan would preserve its governmental-plan exemption from ERISA. EBSA said the nonprofits do not become government…
Reallotment of 2011 dislocated worker funds
ETA adjusted program year 2011 Dislocated Worker formula funding after one state had unobligated funds above the statutory threshold. It said $251,529 would be recaptured and reallotted to other…
Third-party approval of shielding gas regulators for arc welding
A manufacturer asked whether its shielding-gas regulators for arc welding must be approved or listed by a third-party laboratory. OSHA said no for the described regulators, which were not connected…
Unemployment benefits for people who volunteer
ETA encouraged states to let unemployment claimants volunteer without automatically losing benefits, as long as they remain available for work and meet state work search rules. States may consider…
2012 state UI demonstration project applications
ETA explained how states could apply to conduct unemployment demonstration projects under the 2012 law to test faster reemployment or improve state reemployment efforts. It limited projects to…
Monthly testing of conveyor emergency stops
MSHA says coal mine conveyor emergency stop devices, including pull cord switches and their mechanical arms, are electrical equipment under the cited rule. Qualified people must examine and test…
Minimum disaster unemployment benefits for April–June 2012
ETA provided state agencies with minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared from April 1 through June 30, 2012. The attachment lists each state’s average…
2012 foreign labor certification grant planning
ETA gave state workforce agencies fiscal year 2012 planning guidance and funding figures for foreign labor certification activities. It asked administrators to share the guidance with staff…
Medical surveillance for hospital first receivers
A hospital preparedness coordinator asked what medical exams HAZWOPER requires for workers who receive contaminated patients. OSHA said hospital first receivers generally do not need a baseline exam…
2012 farmworker housing grant plans
ETA instructed National Farmworker Jobs Program housing grantees how to prepare their program year 2012 grant plans. The letter requires application and budget forms, a housing analysis, prior-year…
2012 farmworker training grant plans
ETA instructed National Farmworker Jobs Program training grantees how to submit program year 2012 grant plans. It describes required application, budget and narrative materials, limited use of…
Requirements for 2012 state workforce plans
ETA set options for states to obtain approved WIA and Wagner-Peyser workforce plans for program years 2012–2016, agricultural outreach plans, and SCSEP plans. It described integrated planning…
UI claimant and employer messaging toolkit
ETA announced a toolkit of messages and templates for state unemployment agencies to explain claimant work and earnings reporting, work search and employer information duties. The materials include…
Reemployment services for emergency unemployment claimants
ETA explained new reemployment service and eligibility assessment duties for states serving certain Emergency Unemployment Compensation claimants beginning March 23, 2012. It covered referrals,…
2012 workforce program formula allotments
ETA announced program year 2012 funding allotments for WIA adult, dislocated worker and youth programs, Wagner-Peyser Employment Service, and Workforce Information Grants. It explains the funding…
HAZWOPER training for train derailment response crews
A rail response company asked which HAZWOPER roles and training levels apply during hazardous train derailments. OSHA said re-railing crews may qualify as skilled support personnel, while workers…
Completion and publication of calendar year 2011 Benefit Accuracy Measurement data
ETA gave state workforce agencies deadlines and procedures for closing 2011 unemployment benefit accuracy cases, checking the resulting data and submitting corrections before federal publication.…
Fiscal year 2012 state unemployment insurance administration funding
ETA gave state workforce agencies their FY 2012 unemployment insurance administration allocations and explained above-base reimbursement, supplemental requests and limits on flexible use of grant…
Revoking respirable dust sampler certifications
MSHA explains when a district manager may revoke a person’s certification to take respirable dust samples or maintain and calibrate sampling devices. It describes notice, review, and possible…
2012 extension and changes to emergency unemployment compensation
ETA told state workforce agencies how the 2012 law extended and changed Emergency Unemployment Compensation and temporary extended benefits. It addressed tier triggers and amounts, work search and…
Process safety coverage of interconnected pharmaceutical operations
A pharmaceutical employer asked whether production equipment below a hazardous-chemical threshold was covered when connected to distillation and storage equipment. OSHA said the connected equipment…
Improving youth literacy and numeracy gains
ETA clarified how WIA Youth Program staff and providers should serve out-of-school youth with basic skills deficiencies and report literacy and numeracy gains. The letter explains the performance…
Enforcement of 2011 tip-credit rules
WHD’s 2012 bulletin called for nationwide enforcement of its 2011 tip-credit rules, including restrictions on tip pools when an employer took no tip credit. An official notice now says Congress…
Additional duties for firefighters outside an interior fire
A fire captain asked what other work the second firefighter stationed outside an interior fire may perform. OSHA said one outside firefighter must actively monitor the inside crew without other…
2012 Work Opportunity Tax Credit administration funds
ETA gave state workforce agencies final fiscal year 2012 allotments to administer the Work Opportunity Tax Credit program through September 30, 2012. It explains the allocation formula and attaches…
H-2A abandonment and termination for cause
WHD explained when an H-2A employer may be relieved of transportation, subsistence, and three-fourths guarantee duties after a worker abandons a job or is terminated for cause. Investigators must…
2012 poverty guidelines for SCSEP eligibility
ETA instructed Senior Community Service Employment Program grantees to use the attached 2012 poverty and low-income guidelines to determine or recertify participant eligibility. It set January 26,…
Fiscal year 2012 reemployment and eligibility assessment grants
ETA invited state workforce agencies to seek FY 2012 grants for unemployment insurance reemployment and eligibility assessments. It set proposal, service and reporting requirements, including four…
Interest rate on Title XII advances during calendar year 2012
ETA announced that Treasury would charge 2.9430 percent interest on repayable Title XII unemployment insurance advances during calendar year 2012. It reminded states how to fund interest payments…
2012 Trade Activity Participant Report instructions
ETA updated the Trade Activity Participant Report instructions for Trade Adjustment Assistance programs. It replaced the prior reporting handbook with a 2012 edition and supplied a table of…
Revised 2012 advance WIA funding levels
ETA revised fiscal year 2012 advance funding for WIA Adult and Dislocated Worker programs. It replaced the earlier 1.503 percent temporary reduction with a 0.189 percent rescission and sent updated…
WOTC procedures during lapse for nonveteran groups
ETA gave state workforce agencies procedures for Work Opportunity Tax Credit certification requests for nonveteran target groups after their authorization expired on December 31, 2011. It…
Revised petitions for Trade Adjustment Assistance
ETA announced revised English and Spanish petition forms for Trade Adjustment Assistance after the 2011 amendments. States had to make the new forms available and remove the older forms beginning…
Selective Service registration for WIA Title I services
ETA said Selective Service registration requirements applied to WIA Title I programs and services, including formula and discretionary grants, but not to services funded solely by Wagner-Peyser. It…
2012 Trade Adjustment Assistance funding allocations
ETA explained the formula for fiscal year 2012 initial Trade Adjustment Assistance allocations to states and how states could request program reserve funds for training, case management, job search…
Flame-resistant clothing for oil and gas welders
A member of Congress asked about flame-resistant clothing for welders in oil and gas drilling. OSHA said welding PPE depends on the hazards and expects employers to provide flame-resistant clothing…
Consolidation of ETA 9000 fraud and ETA 227 overpayment reports
ETA told state workforce agencies that it had discontinued the annual ETA 9000 internal fraud report and moved selected data into the quarterly ETA 227 overpayment report. It explained the new…
2012 cost-of-living adjustment for federal military pensions
ETA alerted state workforce agencies to the 2012 cost-of-living adjustment for federal military retired pay. The attached Defense Department schedule gives the adjustment information used in…
Revised 2012 federal remuneration schedule for ex-servicemembers
ETA sent states a revised federal remuneration schedule for ex-servicemember claims when the federal claims control center has no DD-214 on file and an affidavit is needed. The attached schedule…
Mercury and hazard communication rules in dental offices
A dentist asked why dental offices were not required to follow OSHA's mercury and hazard communication rules. OSHA answered that an office with employees must comply with applicable safety…
2012 federal civilian salary rates in locality pay areas
ETA told state workforce agencies that certain federal civilian salary rates stayed at 2010 and 2011 levels for 2012. It said states could use the federal salary tables with other documentation to…
2012 Social Security and federal civilian pension adjustments
ETA alerted state workforce agencies to 2012 cost-of-living increases for Social Security survivor and retirement annuities and federal civilian pensions. It directed states to the Office of…
Use of 2009 unemployment special distribution funds
ETA urged states to spend their shares of a $500 million Recovery Act distribution for unemployment insurance modernization, benefits administration, outreach and reemployment services as quickly as…
Temporary extension of emergency and extended unemployment benefits
ETA told states how the December 2011 law temporarily extended Emergency Unemployment Compensation and extended benefit provisions. The attachments give program dates and statutory text. ETA still…
Minimum disaster unemployment benefit amounts for early 2012
ETA sent state workforce agencies a table of minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts based on half of each state’s average weekly unemployment benefit. It applied to major disasters…
Fit testing full-face CBRN respirators
A safety consultant asked what fit tests OSHA requires for respirators used against chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear hazards. OSHA said its respiratory protection rule does not give…
WOTC youth self-attestation form clarification
ETA clarified which boxes on the disconnected youth self-attestation form support eligibility for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. It instructed state workforce agencies to revisit denials based on…
2011 unemployment compensation integrity amendments
ETA explained three unemployment compensation integrity changes enacted in 2011: a minimum monetary penalty for fraud overpayments, a restriction on relieving employers of charges when their actions…
Diesel exhaust fluid hazards for truck drivers
A truck drivers' union asked how OSHA would address chemical and lifting hazards when drivers refill diesel exhaust fluid tanks. OSHA said hazard communication rules apply to the urea-based fluid,…
Removing contaminated needles from caps before disposal
An OSHA regional office asked whether medical or dental staff could remove contaminated needles from their caps before discarding them. OSHA said the cited rule generally prohibits removing…
Cooperation fund contribution to a pension plan
A labor-management cooperation fund asked whether it could contribute cash to a related pension plan without violating ERISA prohibited transaction rules. EBSA said the mere contribution would not…
Revised state unemployment data validation operations guide
ETA sent states replacement pages for the unemployment insurance Data Validation Operations Guide, changing wage-item validation instructions in Chapters 11 and 12. The official letter’s PDF…
Exposure control plans for employers with multiple facilities
An employer asked whether one bloodborne pathogens exposure control plan could cover several facilities. OSHA said each facility or workplace needs its own written plan, which must address every…
Consent to release source-patient blood test results
An attorney asked whether a patient whose blood is tested after a worker's exposure must give separate consent to release the results. OSHA said the consent to test implies consent to release the…
Grounding electrically operated overhead cranes
A crane company asked whether overhead cranes may ground through their wheels, whether older installations are exempt, and how grounding conductors must be marked. OSHA said a wheel path is possible…
Selective Service registration for WIA services
ETA explained Selective Service registration checks for men seeking WIA-funded services, including evidence of registration and handling applicants who did not register. It also addressed…
Voluntary N95 use and respirator maintenance
An attorney asked how OSHA classifies N95 filtering facepieces and what employers must do when workers wear them voluntarily. OSHA said a filtering facepiece is a negative-pressure respirator;…
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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.