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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Child-support deductions from unemployment benefits under legal process
ETA told state unemployment agencies that a 1996 change to the Social Security Act broadened the legal process that can require child-support deductions from unemployment compensation. Orders from…
Diversification within grandfathered floor-offset pension arrangement
An employer asked whether allowing stock bonus plan participants to sell company shares and reinvest in a diversified fund would end an older floor-offset arrangement’s statutory grandfathering.…
Firefighter proximity and structural protective gear
An OSHA office clarified protective clothing for firefighters who may respond to aircraft crashes as well as building fires. It said personnel whose primary duties include crash and rescue need…
Retiree benefit association serving another health plan
A railroad retiree benefit association asked whether it could use excess facilities to provide point-of-service care for a separate national health plan. EBSA said use of excess fixed-asset capacity…
OSHA coverage and enforcement at dairy farms
A congressional office asked which OSHA rules covered dairy farms and whether large farms faced different treatment. OSHA said agricultural and certain general-industry standards applied to farms of…
Recognizing tractor rollover protective structures
A tractor company asked whether OSHA would automatically recognize a particular rollover-protection frame tested under international standards. OSHA said qualifying ISO tests could be accepted as…
OSHA standards for heating and plumbing service work
A mechanical contractors’ association asked which OSHA standards applied to heating, plumbing, and air-conditioning service workers. OSHA said general-industry rules generally govern service work,…
Temporary Army letter substitution for DD Form 215
ETA temporarily allowed state unemployment agencies to accept an official U.S. Army letter requesting a corrected military discharge form in place of DD Form 215 for UCX eligibility decisions. It…
Licensed professionals under methylene chloride surveillance rule
An occupational-medicine group asked OSHA to require physicians to oversee all medical surveillance under its methylene chloride rule. OSHA declined, saying a licensed health professional could…
Coding telephone and electronic continued claims in BAM
ETA told state unemployment agencies how to code continued claims filed through telephones and other electronic methods in the Benefit Accuracy Measurement database. Claims initiated by telephone,…
Unpredictable intermittent leave and medical certification
WHD considered intermittent leave to care for an employee's wife when the dates could not be predicted. It said the FMLA did not require an exact leave schedule in the medical certification and an…
Salary deductions for FMLA leave by exempt employees
WHD addressed salary deductions for exempt employees taking FMLA leave. It said the statutory exception to the salary-basis rule permits proportional deductions only for eligible employees of…
Gloves during orthodontic procedures and latex allergy
An orthodontist asked whether gloves were needed for procedures with no expected contact with blood or saliva and raised concerns about latex allergy. OSHA said gloves are required when hand contact…
Methylene chloride standard and foam manufacturers
A senator relayed a foam manufacturer’s concern that OSHA’s methylene chloride limit would force use of more flammable solvents. OSHA said its rulemaking found compliance feasible and did not…
Mouthbit respirators for emergency phosgene escape
A chemical company asked whether workers could use a mouthbit respirator during an emergency phosgene release even though it was not approved for that gas. OSHA described narrow conditions for…
Disinfectant choices under bloodborne pathogen precautions
A disinfectant maker asked whether newly approved products with different kill claims changed OSHA’s universal-precautions approach. OSHA said employers must choose an appropriate disinfectant for…
HAZWOPER scope and modeled hazardous-waste exposure
An environmental firm asked whether worst-case air modeling plus protective equipment could establish that HAZWOPER did not apply at a waste site. OSHA said site characterization must consider…
Methylene chloride exposure rule and small-business feasibility
A member of Congress asked about the costs and scientific basis of OSHA’s methylene chloride rule. OSHA said its record supported a 25-parts-per-million eight-hour limit, described exposure controls…
Safety cages on a 24-foot fixed warehouse ladder
A lawyer asked whether a 24-foot warehouse ladder needed a safety cage under OSHA’s then-written rule. OSHA said literal compliance required a cage, but following the later ANSI 24-foot threshold…
Cleanup contractors at electric power facilities
A cleanup contractor asked whether OSHA’s electric power standard applied to hazardous-waste and industrial cleanup at power facilities. OSHA said coverage depends on the installation or exposure to…
Annual inspections of lockout and tagout procedures
A company asked whether it had to document lockout procedures for equipment with one energy source and how many procedures needed annual review. OSHA said the duty to have an energy-control…
Interchanging air cylinders on emergency respirators
OSHA warned regional offices that using another maker’s cylinder on a self-contained breathing apparatus normally voided its NIOSH approval. It allowed a temporary exception when a life-saving…
Article exemption under the hazard communication rule
A state health department asked when manufactured items count as exempt articles under OSHA’s hazard communication rule. OSHA said a refrigeration unit may qualify in ordinary end use, but workers…
Injury-log duties for health services employers
A health services company asked whether a low-hazard industry exemption relieved it of OSHA injury and illness logs. Under OSHA’s former SIC-based recordkeeping rules, OSHA said health services…
OSHA response to a question about toluene exposure
A worker asked whether past workplace toluene exposure could explain a child’s medical condition. OSHA replied that, on the information it had in 1997, it did not find an established link to that…
Rust-ring removal and former OSHA injury logs
A requester asked whether treating a rust ring in an injured eye was recordable. Under OSHA’s former recordkeeping guidance, OSHA said removal of an embedded foreign body counted as medical…
Computer-based bloodborne pathogen safety training
A safety consultant asked whether interactive computer training could meet OSHA training duties, especially for bloodborne pathogens. OSHA said it can be part of a program, but generic software…
Confidentiality and disclosure of unemployment records
ETA said information collected for state unemployment programs is confidential, with specified exceptions. It described when state agencies could or must disclose records to public officials and…
Potable water for general industry and farm workers
A garden business asked whether OSHA required drinking water to be piped instead of bottled. OSHA said applicable general-industry and farm sanitation rules required water meeting the relevant…
Methylene chloride rule and adhesive manufacturers
An adhesive manufacturer asked whether OSHA’s methylene chloride rule would force a switch to more hazardous solvents. OSHA said its rulemaking found the exposure limit feasible for nearly all…
Revised 1997 nonmonetary determination training schedule
ETA revised the 1997 schedule for training state unemployment staff on nonmonetary determination quality. It added sessions, reassigned regions among locations, and gave hotel arrangements and…
Hazard communication for vehicle maintenance chemicals
A technicians’ association asked whether common vehicle-shop fluids counted as hazardous chemicals and whether cotton uniforms were protective equipment. OSHA said antifreeze, oil, and diesel fell…
Rebar caps and construction impalement hazards
OSHA clarified an earlier memo about small mushroom-style rebar caps. It said the caps were not banned for ordinary use or minor-injury prevention, but employers must assess whether exposed rebar…
Trucking inspections, employee interviews, and forklift belts
A trucking association asked about OSHA inspections, private worker interviews, fatality reports, and forklift seat belts. OSHA explained when an employer could require an inspection warrant and how…
1997 interest rate on Title XII advances
ETA told state unemployment agencies that the Treasury Department would charge 6.604 percent interest on Title XII advances during calendar year 1997. The letter required no state action. Its rate…
Insurer affiliate mutual-fund service fees and menu changes
An insurer affiliate asked about fees from unrelated mutual funds and its ability to replace funds offered to plans. EBSA said receiving fees alone need not violate the cited rule absent fiduciary…
Mutual-fund fees offsetting trustee charges
A bank trustee asked whether receiving fees from mutual funds selected for client plans violated ERISA. EBSA said disclosed fees used to reduce the plans’ existing trustee obligations, with excess…
Fall protection while moving on reinforcing steel assemblies
Two construction groups asked whether workers needed fall protection while climbing or moving on preassembled reinforcing steel. OSHA said it would not cite those movements under the cited provision…
Process safety coverage of public flame displays
A consultant asked whether public flame-effects systems were covered by OSHA’s process safety management rule. OSHA said the display operation described was generally outside that rule. It warned…
Voluntary respirators below nuisance-dust exposure limits
A union representative asked what respirator duties applied when measured dust exposure was below OSHA’s limit. OSHA said a respirator might not be required to meet that limit, but voluntary use…
HEPA vacuum use with asbestos glovebags
A training institute asked whether every asbestos glovebag needed an attached HEPA vacuum. OSHA said its standard includes a glovebag procedure without that attachment. A glovebag system designed to…
Safety data sheets for drugs in physician offices
A clinic asked whether drugs required material safety data sheets and whether a drug reference book could replace them. OSHA said hazardous pharmaceuticals generally require hazard information for…
Hazard labels for portable fire extinguishers
A fire-equipment service company asked when portable extinguishers needed hazard labels, including older units. OSHA said extinguishers containing hazardous chemicals must be labeled regardless of…
Glutaraldehyde and healthcare chemical hazard information
Healthcare workers asked OSHA about glutaraldehyde and workplace chemical rules. OSHA said healthcare employers must maintain hazard communication programs, train workers, and provide updated safety…
Stored flammables under the process safety standard
OSHA told regional offices how to handle atmospheric tanks connected to processes under its process safety management standard after the Meer decision. It said it would not count qualifying…
Electrical welding in a nonpermit confined space
A requester asked whether bringing electrical welding equipment into a nonpermit confined space automatically changed its classification. OSHA said it did not, if welding-rule protections prevented…
1997 national meeting for unemployment appeals staff
ETA announced a joint meeting for state unemployment appeals managers and administrative staff to exchange ideas on managing large appeals workloads. It said states would need to pay participants'…
Corrected final PY 1997 Wagner-Peyser allotments to states
ETA corrected the final PY 1997 Wagner-Peyser employment service allotment attachment sent with TEGL No. 8-96. States were told to remove the April 16, 1997 attachment and use the revised May 8…
Federal agency injury logs for claims filed after retirement
An OSHA region asked how a federal agency should log occupational-illness claims filed by former employees. Under its former federal-agency recordkeeping policy, OSHA said the claim belonged on the…
Consumer travel association health program as MEWA
Virginia asked whether a consumer and traveler association’s health program was a multiple employer welfare arrangement. EBSA said it was a MEWA on the stated assumption that members included…
Year 2000 readiness of unemployment insurance software
ETA described which national unemployment insurance software and data formats needed changes for the year 2000. It said its Tax Performance System COBOL program was compliant, while the BAM program…
Use of older approved particulate respirator inventories
A respirator supplier asked whether pre-1998 approved filters and respirators could still be sold or used after new manufacturing rules took effect. OSHA said distributors could sell stock acquired…
Minimum disaster unemployment benefits for April–June 1997
ETA supplied a state-by-state table of average weekly unemployment benefits, calculated 50 percent amounts, and rounded minimum Disaster Unemployment Assistance benefits. The figures applied to…
Final PY 1997 Wagner-Peyser allotments to states
ETA announced final PY 1997 Wagner-Peyser employment service allotments to states and explained the statutory formula, the 3% setaside, and the amount held for postage costs. Its April 16 allotment…
Updated list of significant local and bilingual employment service offices for PY 1997
ETA corrected its PY 1997 list of significant local and bilingual employment service offices because it had omitted a Texas office. State workforce officials were asked to replace the earlier Table…
Fiberglass product labels for workplace and consumer use
A consumer group asked whether a fiberglass insulation product needed a cancer warning under OSHA’s hazard communication rule. OSHA said workplace products may require that warning and safety-sheet…
Sulfur dioxide concentrations under process safety rules
An engineer asked whether sulfur dioxide in a combustion gas triggered OSHA’s process safety management rule. OSHA rescinded its December 11, 1996 answer and said Appendix A uses commercial-grade…
OSHA nursing home outreach and inspection initiative
A senator asked why OSHA chose seven states for a nursing-home safety initiative and whether it imposed new duties. OSHA said those states were selected by nursing-home counts and federal…
Class III asbestos work during inspections and bulk sampling
An asbestos inspector asked how bulk sampling was classified and whether EPA inspector training had to be repeated as OSHA Class III training. OSHA said disturbing suspected asbestos for bulk…
Separate asbestos analysis of sheetrock and joint compound
A cleaning contractor asked whether sheetrock and joint compound could be tested as one composite material. OSHA said each must be analyzed separately for asbestos. Where joint compound alone…
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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.