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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Affiliated mutual fund fees under PTE 77-4
A trust company asked whether its plans could invest in affiliated mutual funds under a prohibited transaction exemption. EBSA said the described waiver of investment advisory fees could satisfy the…
PNC affiliated funds and service fees under PTE 77-4
A financial group asked whether plans it managed could buy affiliated mutual fund shares while its affiliates received fees for additional services. EBSA said the exemption did not require crediting…
Optional unemployment denials for school employees between terms
ETA revised its interpretation of optional unemployment benefit denials for school employees between academic terms and during breaks. It said states may limit a denial to selected classes of…
Wood dust sampling and cyclone use
A public health researcher questioned a sampling instruction for wood dust. OSHA said the reference to respirable sampling was a typographical error, corrected its information system, and added a…
Disaster unemployment benefit amounts for April–June 1993
ETA directed state unemployment agencies to use the attached average weekly benefit amounts when calculating disaster unemployment assistance for disasters occurring April through June 1993. States…
Fire extinguishers and toeboards in home construction
A home builder proposed keeping fire extinguishers in crew trucks and using a low wall plate as a toeboard. OSHA said truck extinguishers did not meet its concern because workers reaching the truck…
Blood product labeling exemption for diagnostic kits
A diagnostics company asked whether its FDA-reviewed blood product labels satisfied an OSHA exception. OSHA said the described labels appeared to meet the exception, while employees handling the…
Contaminated uniforms under the bloodborne pathogens standard
A police association asked who must clean contaminated uniforms. OSHA said federal OSHA lacked jurisdiction over local and state police, then explained its private sector rule: a uniform functioning…
Emergency response training for marine oil spill cleanup
An oil company asked whether its trained hazardous materials technicians could clean up a marine oil spill during emergency response. OSHA said they could if they were its own initial responders,…
Interim confined space enforcement for utility underground work
An internal OSHA memo addressed permit required confined space enforcement in utility manholes and vaults. It directed staff to consult a deputy director before citing these facilities while the…
Guarding tabletop centrifuges
A device maker asked whether machine guarding provisions applied to tabletop centrifuges. OSHA said a specific rotating barrel provision did not apply, but the general guarding rule covered hazards…
Policy framework for the 1993 Summer Challenge youth program
ETA set out a provisional framework for the proposed 1993 Summer Challenge program for economically disadvantaged youth. It addressed supervised work, academic enrichment, program oversight, data…
Process safety threshold for listed chemicals and compounds
An environmental services firm asked when listed chemicals and compounds trigger process safety management. OSHA said Appendix A thresholds applied to pure listed chemicals unless the entry…
Radiofrequency protective clothing performance criteria
The FCC asked OSHA about radiofrequency protective clothing. OSHA said effective use depends on breakdown threshold, surface heating, absorption reduction, maintainability, and complete body…
Hydrogen sulfide respiratory protection during tank gauging
A motor carrier association asked about hydrogen sulfide exposure at crude oil tank hatches. OSHA said employers needed exposure determinations for the work and, for sour crude gauging, monitoring…
Human albumin under the bloodborne pathogens standard
A manufacturer asked OSHA to exclude heat-treated human albumin from its bloodborne pathogens standard. OSHA declined because the product remained within the standard’s definition of blood. It…
Grounding continuity and extension cord indicator lights
A seller asked whether a built-in light on an extension cord satisfied continuity testing. OSHA said the light showed the cord was energized but gave no information about the continuity of its…
Michigan builders health plan fully insured under proposed contract
A requester asked whether a proposed insurance agreement would make a Michigan builders' health program fully insured. EBSA said yes, if executed as described: the insurer would owe all covered…
Proper recording of a hepatitis A exposure for OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping purposes
An employer asked how to record employees’ possible hepatitis A exposure. OSHA said an exposure alone is not recordable unless an employee develops an infection or disease; preventive care by itself…
Frame grounding of arc welding machines
An engineering company asked how OSHA’s construction rules apply to frame grounding on portable, engine-driven arc welding machines. OSHA said the machines are basically portable generators and that…
Recording cases on the OSHA log that involve bloodborne pathogens
OSHA told regional recordkeeping coordinators that an exposure incident involving blood or other potentially infectious material may be recordable under 29 CFR Part 1904. Contact with intact skin…
Meeting labeling requirements of the hazard communication standard for slag wool
A slag wool manufacturer asked whether it could use signs and shipment documents instead of attaching labels directly to bales. OSHA agreed that the proposed methods could meet the Hazard…
First aid program requirements where a medical facility is near the workplace
An industry group asked what first aid arrangements employers need when a medical facility is near the workplace. OSHA said the required response time depends on the likely severity of workplace…
Platforms and ladders on communication towers
A communication tower engineering firm asked which OSHA rules apply to ladders, platforms and climbing devices. OSHA said 29 CFR 1910.23 and 1910.27 apply, and described when ladderway openings and…
1992 amendments to JTPA Title III dislocated worker services
ETA explained amendments to JTPA Title III that took effect when the 1993 defense authorization law was signed. The guidance covered state rapid response duties, reporting, needs related payments,…
Recording TB related cases on the OSHA 200 Log
OSHA instructed regional recordkeeping coordinators to record work-related tuberculosis infections and disease on the OSHA 200 Log. It said a workplace exposure is presumed in certain healthcare and…
OSHA jurisdiction at an Indian reservation clinic
A dentist asked whether OSHA covered employees working at a clinic on an Indian reservation. OSHA said the Act made no special exemption for tribes, that tribal employers were treated like other…
Dust exposure monitoring in hazardous waste site plans
An environmental consultant asked how OSHA's HAZWOPER rules interact with a state agency's dust action level for cleanup projects. OSHA said it enforces its own worker standards, while stricter…
Bloodborne pathogen hazards at construction sites
An electrical contractors' association asked whether exclusion from OSHA's bloodborne pathogens rule also meant construction employers had no duty to address blood exposure. OSHA said the general…
Taiwan representative office health plan under ERISA
A representative office of Taiwan asked whether its proposed U.S. employee health program would be an ERISA welfare plan. EBSA said it would provide covered medical benefits through an employer in…
Employee-funded supplemental disability association under ERISA
A requester asked whether a voluntarily funded disability trust for warehouse employees was an ERISA welfare plan. EBSA said the employee association, limited to workers at one employer location and…
UC Tax Audit Documentation Requirements
ETA sent state unemployment agencies revised documentation standards for employer tax field audits, including a detailed Employment Security Manual attachment. It reduced the fiscal 1993 minimum…
Guarding protruding rebar against impalement
A safety consultant asked how far reinforcing steel must protrude before OSHA requires guarding. OSHA said length was not the trigger: rebar of any length had to be guarded where a worker could fall…
McDermott, Inc./Gates Construction Co., Inc. inspection workers considered as seamen
OSHA reviewed whether workers on an inspected pipe-laying barge were land-based maritime workers or seamen. It concluded that their berthing and meals aboard the vessel, together with their work…
Engine cut off switch for an elevated work platform
An equipment company asked whether an employee on an elevated work platform needs an engine cutoff switch on a powered industrial truck. OSHA said the switch is required when the truck has controls…
Vertical stack and scaling ladders in construction
A state safety investigator asked how OSHA treated temporary vertical stack or scaling ladders. OSHA said they were portable ladders, but vertical use with another effective fall protection method…
HAZWOPER refresher training after lapses in work
An industrial hygiene firm asked when HAZWOPER refresher training was due and what workers returning after a long absence needed. OSHA said refresher training was intended within twelve months,…
Employer investment staff expenses reimbursed by pension plans
An employer asked whether its pension plans could reimburse salaries and expenses of staff managing their investments. EBSA said a services exemption could apply if its conditions were met, and…
Navy gas-free certification for shipyard hot work
OSHA responded to a regional question about Navy personnel certifying former fuel spaces for hot work. It said a Navy Gas Free Engineer met its competent-person requirement, while a Gas Free…
OSHA does not cover restaurant customer safety
A congressional office relayed a concern about hot food skillets carried above shoulder height near restaurant customers. OSHA said its jurisdiction concerned employee safety and did not cover…
Cumulative trauma disorder (recording) on the OSHA 200 log
A medical consultant asked how to record several possible cumulative trauma disorder cases. OSHA said an immobilizing splint is generally medical treatment, ice used at home is first aid, and a job…
Request for approval of hoist hook remote release device
A manufacturer asked OSHA to approve or recommend a remote release device for crane hoist hooks. OSHA said it does not approve or endorse products because workplace conditions and product use vary.…
Georgia Baptist hospital benefit plans as church plans
A request made for the Baptist Convention of the State of Georgia asked whether benefit plans for its hospital system were church plans. EBSA found the churches' control of the institutions and an…
Pittsburgh Mercy health system plans as church plans
A Pittsburgh Mercy health system asked whether its hospital and related institutions’ employee plans were church plans. EBSA said the Catholic order’s control of the institutions and associated…
Puerto Rico payroll deduction rule preempted for ERISA plans
An employer asked whether Puerto Rico could prohibit payroll deductions for employee contributions to an ERISA savings plan. EBSA reaffirmed its earlier opinions that the cited Puerto Rico provision…
Reusable phlebotomy collection device
A medical device maker asked whether its reusable phlebotomy holder complied with OSHA’s bloodborne-pathogens standard. OSHA said the device appeared to allow a contaminated needle to be recapped…
Transition guidance for the 1992 JTPA amendments
ETA gave states and local job-training areas transition rules for the 1992 JTPA amendments. It explained how to use older funds, serve participants enrolled before the new rules, handle procurement…
ERISA preemption does not require an advisory opinion
A firm asked whether New Jersey could apply a state insurance coordination rule to an ERISA plan until DOL issued an opinion about preemption. EBSA said ERISA preemption is self-executing and does…
Television transmission towers
A Kentucky official asked which federal OSHA standards apply to television transmission towers. OSHA said the telecommunications standard leaves uncovered operations subject to other applicable Part…
Firefighter HAZWOPER training and NFPA 472 levels
A fire training commission asked whether 1992 NFPA 472 courses met HAZWOPER requirements and who set responders' roles. OSHA said the NFPA levels were generally equivalent except for the hazardous…
Criteria for recording work-related tuberculosis cases on OSHA Form 200
OSHA instructed regional coordinators to record work-related tuberculosis infections and disease on the OSHA 200 Log. It presumed work-related exposure in specified healthcare and congregate…
Coast Guard authority over housing on fish processors
A regional office asked whether OSHA could apply temporary labor camp housing rules to floating fish processors. OSHA said the Coast Guard governed vessel living spaces, removed that subject from a…
Material safety data sheets for table salt
A senator asked why a constituent had received a material safety data sheet for table salt. OSHA said manufacturers determine a product's hazards, its consumer-product exception depends on employee…
Plywood sheeting in excavation shoring systems
A utility contractor asked whether layered plywood could hold back soil in a hydraulic waler trench system. OSHA said plywood could contain raveling soil and transfer its load but could not replace…
Recording elastic bandage use and small burns on the OSHA log
A safety professional asked whether using an elastic bandage or treating a small burn makes an injury recordable. OSHA said a non-constraining bandage is generally first aid, while an immobilizing…
Disaster unemployment benefit amounts for January–March 1993
ETA directed state unemployment agencies to use the attached average weekly benefit amounts when calculating disaster unemployment assistance for disasters occurring January through March 1993.…
Upper controls on crane-supported personnel platforms
A crane maker asked OSHA to revisit its 1990 letter requiring upper controls on personnel platforms attached to mobile crane booms. OSHA said the earlier letter was superseded: upper controls were…
Bracing masonry walls built beside scaffolds
A construction safety council asked whether a masonry wall could remain unbraced on its scaffolded side until scaffolding was removed. OSHA said walls over eight feet that were not otherwise…
Spirometry tubing and bloodborne pathogen exposure
A medical equipment supplier asked whether spirometry tubing had to be sterilized under OSHA's bloodborne pathogens rule. OSHA said ordinary saliva outside dental procedures was not covered unless…
Ground-fault protection in construction job trailers
A builders' association asked if outlets inside a construction job trailer needed construction-site ground-fault protection. OSHA said certain interior outlets still needed protection under the…
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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.