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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Tuberculosis respirator fit-testing restriction for fiscal 2005
OSHA told its regional offices that a fiscal 2005 appropriations restriction barred using covered funds to enforce annual respirator fit testing for occupational tuberculosis exposure that year. The…
Strobe warning lights on forklifts in marine and industrial work
A terminal operator asked whether it could add strobe lights to forklifts in vessel holds and general-industry facilities. OSHA said marine-equipment modifications that may affect safety need the…
Rim-wheel chart alternatives for tire servicing
A tire-service trainer asked what to do when two OSHA rim-wheel charts were no longer printed. OSHA said current rim manuals with the required mounting, maintenance, and safety instructions could be…
Elected constable’s hours and a separate county job
A county asked whether the hours of an elected constable should be combined with hours in a separate part-time county job for FLSA overtime. WHD said the constable’s elective office was excluded…
Enterprise coverage of a charitable foster home
A charitable nonprofit operating foster homes asked whether it was an enterprise covered by the FLSA. WHD said the described homes lacked a business purpose and did not operate a covered hospital,…
Extension of the Resource Justification Model data collection
ETA announced federal approval to continue collecting states' Resource Justification Model data through November 30, 2007. States used the model to report major cost categories and justify…
Needle removal from a multi-dose medication pen
A long-term care provider asked how to remove used needles from a reusable medication pen when a safer version was unavailable. OSHA said its bloodborne-pathogens rule generally forbids needle…
Nylon cable ties as lockout devices
A plant asked whether heavy-duty nylon ties could replace chains and locks on valves. OSHA said ordinary cable ties generally lack the strength required of a lockout device, though a tie might be…
Retractable rest platforms on fixed construction ladders
A manufacturer asked whether an automatically retracting rest platform and self-retracting lifeline could meet the fixed-ladder rule for climbs of at least 24 feet. OSHA said the rule does not…
Cash incentives credited to health savings accounts
An insurer asked whether cash incentives deposited directly into customers’ health savings accounts by it or a partner bank were prohibited transactions. EBSA said the described contributions went…
2004 state customer satisfaction survey weights
ETA gave states the weights to calculate 2004 customer satisfaction scores for workforce program participants, employers and job seekers. It also identified which exit cohorts to use for that year's…
Children’s home house parents and the overtime exemption
A religious children’s home asked whether its house parents met the FLSA overtime exemption for married couples caring for certain children at nonprofit educational institutions. WHD said the home…
Residential fall-protection procedures under a 2004 directive
A regional office asked how OSHA’s then-current residential fall-protection directive applied to monitors, truss installation, warning lines, and several roofing tasks. OSHA answered each scenario…
Work Opportunity and Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit reauthorization and interstate certification requests
ETA announced a 2004 extension of the Work Opportunity and Welfare-to-Work tax credits for qualifying new hires through 2005. It told state workforce agencies to process timely certification…
Firefighter shift substitutions under section 7(p)(3)
A firefighter’s colleagues wanted to work her scheduled shifts so she could continue receiving pay and benefits during an extended injury. WHD said public-agency employees may substitute for one…
Twenty-minute unpaid meal periods
A correctional facility asked whether its officers could take a twenty-minute unpaid meal period instead of thirty minutes. WHD said a meal period is generally thirty minutes, but a shorter period…
Airline affiliates and the section 13(b)(3) exemption
An airline technology affiliate asked whether it and its holding company were air carriers under the Railway Labor Act, which could exempt their employees from FLSA overtime. WHD concluded that the…
Column sleeve anchorage and steel-erection sway hazards
A steel erector asked whether a four-rod sleeve anchorage system complied with OSHA’s column-anchorage rule. OSHA said the sleeve met that rule, but a gap allowing the column to sway and stop…
Subcontractor duty to protect floor holes
A concrete subcontractor asked whether it could rely on the general contractor to cover holes it drilled. OSHA said the subcontractor must still protect its exposed workers and check that the…
Hard-hat and eye-protection duties near construction work
Pipeline workers asked whether distance from trenching equipment determines when hard hats and eye protection are needed. OSHA said its rules set no fixed distance; employers must assess reasonably…
Services under USDA Trade Adjustment Assistance for Farmers
ETA instructed state workforce agencies to provide reemployment services and limited TAA training to farmers and fishermen entitled to USDA TAA for Farmers cash benefits. The letter explains…
OSHA notice posting in Spanish and other languages
A poster publisher asked whether employers had to post OSHA’s workplace notice in Spanish when workers spoke Spanish. OSHA said the cited federal posting rule did not require a second-language…
Income and Eligibility Verification System extension
ETA announced federal approval for state unemployment agencies to continue participating in the Income and Eligibility Verification System. The system lets agencies administering unemployment…
Military pension and annuitant pay verification contacts
ETA directed state unemployment agencies to one Defense Finance and Accounting Service location for verifying military retirement and annuitant pay when a claimant could not document it. The…
State participation in the evaluation of the Trade Adjustment Assistance program
ETA told state workforce agencies that its contractors would ask 25 randomly selected states to participate in an evaluation of Trade Adjustment Assistance services and outcomes. The letter…
ANSI hazardous-energy standard and OSHA lockout rules
An ANSI committee asked OSHA to recognize its 2003 hazardous-energy standard and clarify whether following it satisfies OSHA’s lockout rule. OSHA said voluntary consensus standards can provide…
Furniture dealership and the section 7(i) exemption
A furniture dealership asked whether its commissioned employees could qualify for the FLSA section 7(i) overtime exemption. WHD said the dealership was a retail establishment because it sold small…
Fire captain volunteering as a chaplain
A municipality asked whether a fire captain could volunteer without pay as a chaplain for the same public employer. WHD said a public-agency employee may volunteer when the service is freely offered…
Construction training for skid-steer loader operators
A construction equipment dealer asked whether skid-steer earthmoving loaders fall under the powered-industrial-truck operator-training rule. OSHA said they do not, because that rule excludes…
Safe operating speeds for forklifts
A worker asked what forklift speed OSHA considers safe. OSHA said it sets no universal numerical speed limit. It evaluates the truck, load, stopping distance, surface, pedestrian traffic, and other…
ATAA certification requests for certain TAA-certified worker groups
ETA allowed certain worker groups already certified for Trade Adjustment Assistance to request Alternative TAA consideration even though the original petition did not ask for it. The change covered…
Manufactured-home loaders and mechanics under the motor carrier exemption
A manufactured-home company asked whether loaders and mechanics qualified for the FLSA motor carrier overtime exemption. WHD explained that loading or maintenance duties must directly affect highway…
Cement tanker routes and interstate commerce for overtime
A cement company asked whether drivers hauling imported cement between two Virginia locations qualified for the FLSA motor carrier overtime exemption. WHD said it lacked evidence that the foreign…
Detention deputies volunteering as reserve deputies
A sheriff’s office asked whether paid detention deputies could volunteer off duty as reserve law enforcement deputies. WHD said the two roles involved the same type of public safety services despite…
Pre-hire job-view days
An employer with high turnover proposed having applicants observe a job for about 7½ hours before hiring, without performing productive work or receiving pay. WHD said the proposed job-view day…
Smoker health premiums and the regular rate
An employer asked whether paying a larger share of health insurance premiums for nonsmokers changed employees’ FLSA regular rate for overtime. WHD said the employer’s irrevocable contributions to a…
Respirator medical evaluations before emergency-response training
A hospital asked whether emergency-response trainees needed medical evaluations before wearing powered air-purifying respirators in practice exercises. OSHA said yes: required respirator users must…
Stairrail and handrail heights during construction
A contractor asked whether a 42-inch stairway top rail could also serve as the handrail during construction. OSHA said no: a top rail above 37 inches needs a separate handrail within the rule’s…
Extension of ETA 9048 and ETA 9049 worker profiling reports
ETA announced federal approval to continue collecting two reports for the Worker Profiling and Reemployment Services program: ETA 9048 tracks referrals and services, and ETA 9049 reports subsequent…
Fitness-for-duty testing after FMLA leave
WHD addressed an employer’s proposed drug test for employees returning from FMLA leave. It explained that a fitness-for-duty certification must follow a uniformly applied policy and concern the…
Corrections officers volunteering as special deputies
A sheriff’s office asked whether its paid corrections officers could volunteer as special deputies. WHD found the jail and deputy roles involved the same type of law enforcement and security…
Respirator medical evaluations and employee confidentiality
A worker asked about the frequency, cost, clinician choice, and confidentiality of respirator medical evaluations. OSHA said there is no blanket annual evaluation rule, but additional checks may be…
State Identification wage index access for unemployment insurance
ETA told state unemployment insurance agencies participating in the Wage Record Interchange System how to use a new State Identification inquiry to find which states had reported wages for a…
Data validation submission instructions for state employment programs
ETA told states how to submit data validation results for Workforce Investment Act, Employment Service, and Trade Adjustment Assistance reports. It allowed email or fax for PY 2002 results but…
Real property used for ETA program purposes
ETA explains how state workforce agencies should account for buildings used by One-Stop partners, including costs, amortization and federal ownership interests. It addresses when WIA, Wagner-Peyser,…
Lockout/tagout minor servicing and a lockable on/off switch
A machine manufacturer asked whether a lockable on/off switch could protect an operator during recurring servicing tasks performed during production. OSHA said a reliable control circuit can be an…
Pre-employment training for tax preparers
A tax-preparation business asked whether a 1969 stipulation still controlled how its pre-employment training courses were treated under the FLSA. WHD said later guidance had displaced that…
Paid emergency medical work by volunteer members
Volunteer emergency medical companies asked whether they could hire their own volunteers for some paid shifts and keep other shifts unpaid. WHD said a person cannot perform the same EMS service for…
Requirements for fit testing before fire brigade training exercises
An employer asked whether fire brigade trainees needed fit testing for SCBAs that they wore during practice exercises but not during exposure to a hazardous atmosphere. OSHA said fit testing would…
Using a shared bank of FLSA and other compensatory time
A law enforcement organization asked whether public employers could keep FLSA and contract-based compensatory time in one bank and deny requests to use it. WHD said commingling was allowed, but…
Additional guidance on state unemployment tax avoidance
ETA answered state unemployment agencies' questions about the 2004 federal rules against shifting unemployment tax experience to obtain a lower contribution rate. It explained when employer…
Saturday premium pay in a proposed overtime plan
An employer described a workweek with ordinary hourly pay, time and one-half for some hours, and double time on Saturday. WHD said the example satisfied FLSA overtime because the extra Saturday…
Online automobile sales and the salesperson overtime exemption
An online automobile seller asked whether its salespeople qualified for the FLSA dealer salesperson overtime exemption. WHD said the establishment had to derive more than half its gross annual…
Securing a land crane on a barge with a curbing system
A construction company asked whether an engineer-designed timber curbing system could satisfy OSHA’s requirement to positively secure a mobile crane on a barge. OSHA said curbing alone was…
Two health care providers as one FLSA enterprise
Two health care providers asked whether their separate corporations formed one FLSA enterprise for wage and overtime duties. WHD found common control because they shared leadership and board members…
School assistants volunteering as extracurricular coaches
A school board asked whether paid educational assistants could volunteer as coaches and sign away overtime claims. WHD needed descriptions of both jobs to decide whether coaching was the same type…
Recouping vacation overpayment and payroll timing
A city fire department asked whether it could deduct a prior vacation-pay overpayment and use payroll by exception. WHD treated repayment of the overpaid principal like an advance of wages, allowed…
Holiday changes to a public utility’s 9/80 work schedule
A public utility asked whether a proposed 9/80 schedule and a holiday adjustment complied with the FLSA. WHD said an employer could use a fixed workweek starting mid-day, but the holiday adjustment…
Gap time and compensatory time for public employees
A local government asked how the FLSA treated hours between its 35-hour full-time schedule and 40 hours, along with overtime compensatory time. WHD said the gap hours did not themselves trigger FLSA…
State regulatory board as a public agency
A state medical board asked whether it was a public agency allowed to provide compensatory time instead of cash overtime under the FLSA. WHD said the board was an administrative arm of state…
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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.