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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Rescission of H-2A processing change
ETA rescinded TEGL 11-07, Change 1, which had supplied H-2A labor certification processing procedures for state agencies and national processing centers. ETA said its December 2008 regulation made…
Approved training policy for UI claimants
ETA encouraged states to review what training qualifies as state-approved training for unemployment insurance claimants, building on TEGL 21-08. It recommends policies for approving training during…
WIA annual report narrative update
ETA gave states additional guidelines for the narrative portion of the WIA annual report and updated submission procedures. An attachment outlines possible alternative efficiency measures. TEGL 9-10…
De minimis conditions for chimney construction hoists
OSHA replaced its February 8, 2007 chimney hoist interpretation after finding hazards that the earlier alternative conditions did not address. Its de minimis policy applies only to specified work on…
Debit-card best practices for unemployment benefit payments
ETA recommended direct deposit for claimants with bank accounts, clear notice of debit-card fees and better card-provider fee terms. It interpreted federal unemployment law to require at least one…
Expanded 2009 unemployment technology funding opportunity
ETA expanded a fiscal year 2009 technology funding opportunity beyond overpayment controls to include improvements to state unemployment systems, call centers, electronic services and performance.…
H-2B travel and visa costs under the FLSA
WHD said transportation and visa costs of H-2B workers are generally for the employer’s benefit. Employers must cover those costs when shifting them to workers would drive first-week wages below the…
Digital chest radiography under asbestos medical surveillance rules
A federal health official asked whether digital chest X-rays could replace film for required asbestos medical surveillance. OSHA said no under the standards and reference-image system then in…
Recovery Act recipient reporting rules
ETA gave direct recipients and state workforce agencies initial instructions for reporting uses of Recovery Act funds under section 1512, including data to collect and submission responsibilities.…
Proposed measures of unemployment tax-rate manipulation enforcement
ETA proposed changes to the ETA 581 report and Tax Performance System reviews to measure state detection and enforcement of unemployment tax-rate manipulation, and sought states to test them. The…
High-visibility garments in highway construction work zones
OSHA withdrew its May 11, 2004 answer after a review commission found that it had not given fair notice of the agency’s view. OSHA said specific standards required warning garments for flaggers and…
Administrative subaccounts in state unemployment funds
ETA revised its position on when state unemployment fund money is unavailable for benefit payments in calculating a federal Title XII advance. For specified Reed Act and modernization funds…
Fiscal year 2009 unemployment overpayment technology grants
ETA invited state unemployment agencies to request fiscal year 2009 funds for technology to prevent, detect and collect benefit overpayments. Its attachments include proposal instructions and…
When a supervisor’s dust-mask advice makes respirator use required
A construction employer described outdoor concrete cutting below exposure limits and a supervisor advising a worker to wear an N95 dust mask. OSHA treated that advice as required respirator use,…
Citation guidance for spray finishing operations
An OSHA regional administrator asked how to cite spray finishing work. The corrected memorandum distinguishes booth or room requirements tied to employee exposure from fire and explosion rules, and…
Helper staffing for asbestos glovebag removal
A contractor asked whether each glovebag in a large Class I pipe-insulation removal needed two assigned workers. OSHA said one helper can support a small group of adjacent glovebag workers, provided…
Pell grants and approved UI training clarification
ETA clarified Pell Grant eligibility for unemployment beneficiaries, including the undergraduate-program and prior-degree limits. It encouraged states to tell claimants whether proposed training is…
Minimum disaster unemployment assistance for July through September 2009
ETA sent states minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared July 1 through September 30, 2009. The attachment generally uses half a jurisdiction’s average…
Fiscal year 2010 state unemployment resource planning targets
ETA gave states preliminary fiscal year 2010 unemployment administration budget and staffing targets and explained its allocation method. Three attachments contain detailed state allocations and…
Hexavalent chromium enforcement and substitution
A correspondent urged OSHA to enforce its hexavalent chromium standards and ban the chemical in metal finishing. OSHA encouraged substitution where feasible, noted that some hot work generates…
2008 unemployment performance and 2009-2010 targets
ETA summarized the unemployment insurance program’s fiscal year 2008 results under federal performance goals and announced targets for fiscal years 2009 and 2010. An attachment provides supporting…
Tuberculosis screening in low-risk healthcare settings
A healthcare system asked whether it could stop annual tuberculosis skin testing for workers in low-risk settings under newer CDC guidance. OSHA said following the most recent CDC recommendations…
Funding to help unemployment claimants enter training
ETA offered state agencies one-time administrative funds to tell unemployment claimants about approved training and potential Pell Grant eligibility and to process related claims. The letter lists…
2009 workforce information grants
ETA set the program year 2009 application process and work requirements for Workforce Information Grants to States. Five linked attachments include state allocations, grant procedures, deliverables…
Asbestos building surveys and school safety
A consultant asked why OSHA did not require comprehensive asbestos surveys for K–12 schools covered by EPA’s AHERA rules. OSHA said its standards protect employees rather than the general public and…
Recovery Act subrecipient registration
ETA told workforce grantees that first-tier subrecipients of Recovery Act awards must obtain a DUNS number and maintain current Central Contractor Registration profiles for recipient reporting. ETA…
2009 supplemental TAA funds and reserve requests
ETA explained the formula for supplemental fiscal year 2009 Trade Adjustment Assistance training funds and the separate case-management allotments and how states could request additional reserve…
Revised 2009 workforce performance targets
ETA revised guidance for negotiating 2009 WIA and Wagner-Peyser performance goals, published national GPRA targets for additional ETA programs, and explained the regression model behind the revised…
Fiscal year 2009 funding for unemployment IT security
ETA offered state unemployment agencies fiscal year 2009 supplemental funds to develop or update IT contingency plans, obtain independent validation and improve security. Three attachments provide…
Medical evaluation and fit-test recordkeeping for respirators
An employer asked how to retain respirator medical questionnaires and fit-test records. OSHA said medical evaluation records, including questionnaires and determinations, must be retained and kept…
Disposal of blood and regulated infectious waste
A correspondent asked whether blood and body fluids could go into septic systems or ordinary garbage. OSHA said regulated waste is defined by its potential to release blood or other potentially…
Fiscal year 2010 state unemployment quality service plans
ETA initiated the fiscal year 2010 State Quality Service Plan process for state unemployment agencies and supplied instructions that supplemented its planning handbook. Two attachments provide…
2009 SCSEP planning and allotments
ETA instructed Senior Community Service Employment Program applicants on program year 2009 applications, allotments and required planning materials. Ten attachments provide funding tables, forms and…
2009 farmworker housing competition waiver
ETA waived the scheduled program year 2009 National Farmworker Jobs Program housing assistance competition for qualifying grantees and issued planning guidance for continued service. Its attachment…
2009 Native American workforce allotments
ETA provided Indian and Native American WIA section 166 grantees program year 2009 adult and youth allotments and instructions for applications or plan modifications. Five attachments give…
2009 farmworker job grant competition waiver
ETA waived the scheduled 2009 National Farmworker Jobs Program competition for satisfactory incumbent grantees except specified service areas and gave grantees planning instructions. Its attachments…
Recovery Act workforce performance reporting
ETA directed states on performance reporting for Recovery Act WIA, youth, National Emergency Grant and Wagner-Peyser services and changed WIA standardized record submissions. Three attachments…
Process Safety Management coverage of interconnected flammable-liquid processes
A questioner asked whether a flammable liquid mixture and an interconnected downstream process fell under OSHA’s Process Safety Management standard. OSHA said the mixture’s total mass counts when it…
Youth literacy and numeracy measure revisions
ETA revised how WIA youth programs report the literacy and numeracy measure under TEGL 17-05. It directs states to the Department of Education's NRS website for education-level descriptors instead…
Fiscal year 2009 state unemployment administration allocations
ETA gave state agencies fiscal year 2009 guidance on unemployment administration base allocations, resource planning, above-base funding and supplemental budget requests. ETA now lists the letter as…
Nitric oxide exposure limits for pregnant employees
A physician asked whether OSHA set a different nitric oxide exposure limit for pregnant workers. OSHA said the 25 ppm, eight-hour time-weighted average in its Air Contaminants standard applied to…
Revised TAA petition forms
ETA provided revised ETA Forms 9042 and 9042a for filing Trade Adjustment Assistance petitions under the 2009 amendments, replacing the 2005 versions. Two attachments contain the English and Spanish…
2009 Trade Adjustment Assistance operating instructions
ETA gave state workforce agencies operating instructions for the 2009 Trade and Globalization Adjustment Assistance Act changes to worker eligibility, benefits, training, reemployment assistance and…
2007 WIA incentive grant applications
ETA updated the process for states to apply for WIA section 503 incentive grants based on program year 2007 performance, including eligibility, allowable uses and application materials. Two…
Air monitoring for aircraft confined spaces
A federal contract agency asked about confined-space entry into aircraft tail booms and fuel tanks. OSHA said employers must identify and monitor actual or potential atmospheric hazards throughout…
Employer payment for steel-toe rubber boots
A union asked whether employers had to pay for steel-toe rubber boots required in meatpacking and poultry plants. OSHA said the rubber boots were specialty footwear because their protective design…
Pell grants and UI approved training
ETA encouraged states to broaden approved-training policies for unemployment claimants during the recession and to inform claimants about Pell Grants and other student aid through One-Stop Career…
Program year 2009 workforce allotments
ETA provided program year 2009 Workforce Investment Act adult, dislocated worker and youth allotments, Wagner-Peyser allotments, workforce information grants, and fiscal year 2009 Work Opportunity…
Extended Benefits questions and draft total-unemployment trigger
ETA answered state agencies’ questions about Extended Benefits eligibility, work search, and the temporary federal funding under the 2009 Recovery Act. It also supplied draft language for states…
Recovery Act National Emergency Grants
ETA set policy for National Emergency Grants funded by the 2009 Recovery Act. It addressed eligibility of migrant and seasonal farmworker grantees and public-sector dislocated workers, as well as…
Fiscal year 2009 foreign labor certification grants
ETA provided fiscal year 2009 funding and planning instructions for state workforce agencies administering foreign labor certification activities. The packet includes the planning guidance, workload…
Recovery Act financial reporting
ETA required separate quarterly financial reports for each Recovery Act funding stream under WIA and Wagner-Peyser programs. Grantees had to distinguish Recovery Act funds in their accounting…
Fiscal year 2009 reemployment and eligibility assessment grants
ETA invited state unemployment agencies to propose new or expanded reemployment and eligibility assessments for claimants using fiscal year 2009 funds. The attachments give proposal instructions and…
Recovery Act workforce funding clarifications
This change to TEGL 14-08 clarified when local areas could spend Recovery Act WIA funds, how unobligated funds would be handled, and the transfer limit between adult and dislocated worker programs.…
Minimum disaster unemployment benefits for April through June 2009
ETA sent state agencies minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared April 1 through June 30, 2009. Its attachment lists state figures based on the applicable…
Health Coverage Tax Credit eligibility for trade assistance recipients
ETA told states how the 2009 Recovery Act temporarily expanded the definition of an eligible Trade Adjustment Assistance recipient for the Health Coverage Tax Credit. It covered some workers on a…
Replacement servers for state unemployment database systems
ETA told state unemployment agencies that it would replace their database servers with Sun T2000 systems and coordinate the migration of software and data. Attachments give the system…
Radiation controls for digital dental radiography
A dental hygienist asked whether lower-dose digital dental X-rays justified fewer safety precautions. OSHA agreed that digital systems reduce exposure but said employers must continue engineering,…
Multiple lifts of precast concrete members
OSHA concluded that multiple rigging lifts of precast concrete members were prohibited under the construction rules then in effect. The steel-erection multiple-lift provision did not apply to…
Correction of 2009 retirement cost-of-living guidance
ETA rescinded UIPL 8-09 because its attachment misstated prorated 2009 retirement cost-of-living increases. It directed states with applicable pension-offset laws to review affected unemployment…
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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.