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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OSHA training officer and the professional exemption
An OSHA training officer asked whether duties such as training investigators, presenting standards, and answering public questions met the FLSA professional exemption. WHD said the job did not…
PY 2003 customer satisfaction index formula weights
ETA issued state specific formula weights for calculating American Customer Satisfaction Index scores from workforce program surveys. States were to use the attachment's weights for employer,…
Employer securities in a GM and Hughes stock exchange
GM asked how ERISA employer-security rules applied when its plans exchanged GM Class H shares for Hughes shares. EBSA said both classes were qualifying employer securities before the transaction…
FY 2004 TAA training and administration allocations under the continuing resolution
ETA allocated Trade Adjustment Assistance training and administration funds to states through October 31, 2003, while Congress operated under a continuing resolution. The letter explains that each…
FY 2004 TAA formula planning estimates and reserve funding requests
ETA replaced its grant request approach for most Trade Adjustment Assistance training funds with state formula allocations for FY 2004. The letter describes a 75 percent formula pool, a 25 percent…
Commercial producers health fund as ERISA plan and MEWA
A commercial producers association asked whether its health fund was one ERISA welfare plan and a fully insured multiple employer welfare arrangement. EBSA said the member employers could form a…
State-government council employees in Kentucky retirement system
A Council of State Governments official asked whether its employees could participate in Kentucky’s public retirement system without affecting its ERISA status. EBSA said the association’s joint…
Interim Enhanced Enforcement Program instructions
OSHA instructed its regional administrators to identify priority enforcement cases from specified serious, repeat, willful, fatality, and failure to abate findings. It described follow up…
Warning lines and controlled zones for roofing fall protection
A fall protection consultant asked whether warning lines or controlled access zones could be used on steep roofs and how the rules apply to metal roofing. OSHA explained when a residential fall…
Implementing veterans' priority in DOL workforce programs
ETA told states and DOL funded workforce partners how to apply the Jobs for Veterans Act's service priority for eligible veterans and certain spouses. The priority applied only after a person met a…
Fall protection plans and safety monitors in precast concrete work
A precast concrete industry representative raised concerns about uneven enforcement of fall protection plan rules. OSHA cited its policy allowing contractors to use the sample plan's stated reasons…
FUTA receipts and funds returned to states, FY 2001–2002
ETA supplied fiscal 2001 and 2002 state tables comparing estimated Federal Unemployment Tax Act receipts with federal funds returned for administration and benefits. It also supplied a cumulative…
Asbestos gasket replacement on process equipment
A process equipment company asked which OSHA asbestos standard covers routine replacement of an asbestos containing gasket on a reactor. OSHA said the general industry asbestos standard applies…
Mutual fund profile delivery under ERISA section 404(c)
A plan service provider asked whether delivering an SEC mutual fund Profile around a participant’s first investment satisfied ERISA section 404(c) regulations. EBSA said it did when the Profile was…
Needlestick law outreach and healthcare compliance data
A member of Congress asked how OSHA had implemented the Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act and whether it could measure healthcare facilities' compliance. OSHA described training, enforcement…
Youth loading tools onto city work trucks
WHD considered 14- and 15-year-olds loading tools into trucks for city park work. It said the work normally fell within child-labor transportation prohibitions, but announced a narrow discretionary…
Youth work in city parks, pools, and libraries
WHD answered a city’s questions about employing minors in parks, swimming pools, and libraries. It described a discretionary position for some work by 14- and 15-year-olds while retaining federal…
Temporary labor certification procedures for entertainment employers
ETA gave state workforce agencies special procedures for temporary labor certification applications in the entertainment industry. The attached guidance set out where employers file, recruitment and…
Open toe shoes in office and warehouse work
An office employee asked whether open toe shoes were prohibited at a desk job with occasional contact with warehouse and pharmacy areas. OSHA said it has no general office shoe ban; protective…
OSHA review of chemical hazard communication
A senator asked about the accuracy of material safety data sheets and OSHA's review of reactive chemical hazards. OSHA described the review it was conducting in 2003, draft guidance it planned to…
Listed equipment and building management systems
A building controls specialist asked which OSHA requirement could apply if listed equipment were installed contrary to its listing or label instructions. OSHA pointed to 29 CFR 1910.303(b)(2), which…
Perimeter columns and safety cables at roof level
A steel erector asked whether perimeter columns must extend 48 inches above the finished roof. OSHA said the cited column height requirement refers to the next tier, so it does not apply after the…
Guarding fan blades in air handling equipment
A safety consultant asked about guarding blades on cooling fans and air handling units. OSHA said fan blades within seven feet of a floor or working level must be guarded with openings no wider than…
Data validation policy for employment and training programs
ETA required states and grantees to validate employment and training data reported to the agency. It distinguished checks of aggregate report calculations from checks of participant records against…
Safety colors and markings on machinery
A risk management consultant asked whether OSHA always cites missing color coding on machinery and which machine parts must be marked. OSHA said neither its safety color rule nor the cited ANSI…
State agency questions on advance Health Coverage Tax Credit implementation
ETA answered state workforce agencies' questions about identifying and reporting eligible Trade Adjustment Assistance recipients for the advance Health Coverage Tax Credit that began in August 2003.…
Immediate audiogram retests after a threshold shift
An occupational nurse asked whether an immediate second hearing test uses up an employer's chance to retest a possible standard threshold shift. OSHA said the noise standard does not limit the…
Preliminary 2003 average employer UI contribution rates
ETA sent state workforce agencies preliminary 2003 employer unemployment insurance contribution rates and actual rates for 2001 and 2002. One attachment reports rates by state on taxable and total…
Master-trust reallocation of employer securities
A plan sponsor asked whether moving employer stock from one participating plan’s account to other plan accounts in exchange for equal-value assets counted as an acquisition. EBSA said it did; if a…
Interim instructions for Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance for older workers
ETA gave states interim instructions for certifying and paying older workers under the Alternative Trade Adjustment Assistance program. Eligible workers aged at least 50 who found different…
Hazardous materials response training for firefighters
A state safety official asked whether firefighters trained only at the awareness level could respond to a suspected hazardous substance release to confirm it. OSHA said a suspected release already…
No-fault attendance policies and FMLA leave
WHD addressed an attendance point system that could lead to termination after seven absences. It said a no-fault policy does not necessarily violate the FMLA, but employers may not assess points for…
NFPA 70E and construction multi employer responsibilities
A construction industry association asked whether a general contractor must enforce a subcontractor's compliance with NFPA 70E and what duties facility owners have for electrical hazards. OSHA said…
FMLA complaint and employer bankruptcy
A complainant asked WHD to revisit an FMLA termination complaint after the employer filed for bankruptcy. WHD said it could bring an enforcement action and seek appropriate injunctive relief despite…
Alternative guardrails instead of perimeter safety cables
A steel erector asked whether wooden or other guardrails can satisfy the perimeter safety cable requirement on multistory structures. OSHA said alternatives can meet the rule when installers have…
OMB approval of UCX forms ETA 843 and ETA 841
ETA told state workforce agencies that OMB had extended approval for forms ETA 843 and ETA 841 in the Unemployment Compensation for Ex-servicemembers program. It supplied the approval number,…
Lockable control circuit switch for machine servicing
A machine operator asked whether a lockable switch in an emergency stop circuit could serve as a lockout device during servicing. OSHA said a control circuit device does not meet its energy…
Compensation systems and the FLSA salary-basis test
An energy company asked whether exempt employees could track hours, receive straight-time or other additional pay, and still satisfy the FLSA salary-basis test. WHD said the described system…
External GFCI testers during construction inspections
An OSHA regional office asked whether compliance officers may use external testers to check construction site ground fault circuit interrupters. OSHA said an approved tester's positive reading can…
Snaphook connections in fall arrest systems
A construction worker asked what it means for a locking snaphook to be designed for a connection and whether two hooks may share a harness Dee ring. OSHA said the manufacturer must specifically…
Glass containers for flammable reagent chemicals
A law firm asked whether laboratories could use glass containers allowed by NFPA 30 even when the cited OSHA flammable liquids table was stricter, and whether a four liter container could substitute…
Fall protection on ladder jack scaffolds
A construction coordinator asked when ladder jack scaffold workers need fall protection and whether scaffold platforms may exceed twenty feet. OSHA said scaffold rules require personal fall arrest…
Open neutral protection in construction GFCIs
A contractor asked whether construction site ground fault interrupters lacking open neutral protection had to be replaced. OSHA said the controlling issue is whether a qualified testing laboratory…
Proof tests for custom lifting accessories
A safety consultant asked whether a custom lifting beam requires load marking and proof testing and whether engineering calculations could substitute for a test. OSHA said custom lifting accessories…
Locating buried utilities by hand tools or hydro vacuum
A pipeline safety consultant asked whether hand digging or hydro vacuum equipment could locate buried utilities safely. The July letter rejected traditional hand tools such as shovels and discussed…
Minimum disaster unemployment benefit amounts for July–September 2003
ETA sent state agencies the minimum weekly Disaster Unemployment Assistance amounts for major disasters declared from July through September 2003. Its attachment lists each jurisdiction's average…
Electronic financial reporting for trade training grants
ETA extended the electronic SF 269 financial reporting process in TEGL 17-00 to TAA and NAFTA-TAA training grants. It directed states to report each training and administration portion by funding…
FY 2003 WOTC and welfare-to-work tax credit plans
ETA directed state workforce agencies to plan their FY 2003 Work Opportunity and Welfare-to-Work Tax Credit administration, reporting and grant spending. The letter supplied funding rules and…
Fiscal year 2004 unemployment insurance state quality plans
ETA opened the fiscal year 2004 State Quality Service Plan process for unemployment insurance agencies. It required corrective plans where performance fell below stated criteria and gave special…
Cafeteria benefit plans and the FLSA regular rate
A city asked whether its cafeteria-plan contributions for police officers had to be included in the FLSA regular rate. WHD said a bona fide benefits plan may make incidental cash payments, applying…
Fixed ladder landing platforms and construction standards
A design supervisor asked whether fifty foot landing platform intervals from an OSHA construction pamphlet could replace the thirty foot intervals in the general industry fixed ladder rule. OSHA…
FMLA coverage for a guardian of an adult disabled sibling
WHD considered whether an employee who was the legal guardian of an adult disabled sister could take FMLA leave to care for her. It said a disability that began before age 18 and continued into…
Fall protection alternatives for masonry homes
A regional office asked whether OSHA's residential fall protection procedures for specified wood framed construction applied to single family homes built with block or masonry walls. OSHA said the…
Terminated welfare trust surplus and charitable transfer
A Pennsylvania welfare trust asked how to distribute surplus after termination. The Department said the share attributable to participant contributions should provide participant benefits; after all…
Interactive questions in bloodborne pathogen training
An employer asked whether an online or workbook bloodborne pathogen course could answer employee questions by email later. OSHA said the training must provide an opportunity for interactive…
Trust company mutual-fund service fees
A trust company asked whether receiving mutual-fund service fees, including from affiliated funds, violated ERISA. EBSA said the described fees did not violate section 406(b)(1) or (b)(3) when an…
Emergency response to anhydrous ammonia releases
A refrigeration facility asked whether an emergency plan under 29 CFR 1910.38 was enough for defensive responses to releases from a large ammonia system. OSHA said the described releases could…
Manhole-step enforcement during walking-surface rulemaking
A requester asked how OSHA would enforce manhole-step rules while a walking-surface revision was pending. OSHA said it would not cite steps meeting the proposed rung-width and toe-clearance…
PY 2003 agricultural services submissions
ETA instructed state workforce agencies to submit PY 2003 agricultural services plans as part of their WIA strategic planning. The attached guidance addresses farmworker needs, outreach, One-Stop…
Recordkeeping for professional sports team injuries
An insurer asked whether professional sports teams must include players' injuries in the OSHA injury and illness records. OSHA said the recordkeeping rule applies to employees, but it could not…
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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.