State and Federal Labor Guidance
Free state and federal labor-agency opinion letters, administrative policies, and interpretive notices, with plain-English summaries, current status, and the official source on every page.
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Use of merged DD-214 forms for ex-servicemember unemployment claims Unknown
ETA told state unemployment agencies how to handle merged copies of military discharge Form DD-214 submitted with ex-servicemember claims. A state may use a merged copy after the Louisiana Claims…
Part-time employees can adopt their own alternative workweek schedule as a recognized subdivision of the work group
Responding to a follow-up on an earlier interpretive bulletin and letter, DLSE clarified that part-time employees are not excluded from adopting an alternative workweek schedule under Wage Orders 4,…
Needle sheath for recapping and sharps disposal Unknown
A device maker asked whether a needle sheath could protect workers during recapping and serve as a disposal container. OSHA said the proposed finger guard was too small for safe two-handed…
Electronic access to material safety data sheets
An information system provider asked whether its electronic hazard database could replace material safety data sheets. OSHA said computers or fax could deliver sheets if workers could obtain…
IRA investment in a condominium and mortgage guarantee Unknown
EBSA addresses two self-directed IRAs’ proposed purchase of a condominium through a corporation. It said purchase from a developer represented not to be a disqualified person would not be a…
Fire brigades and portable extinguisher duties
An attorney asked when workplace fire brigade and extinguisher rules applied. OSHA said organized employee groups fighting even incipient fires were fire brigades subject to the relevant rule, with…
Hazard warnings on carbon and graphite products
An industry group sent draft warning label guidance for carbon and graphite electrical products. OSHA said it did not approve the guidelines, but explained that suppliers must label…
Jacobs Engineering employee stock purchase plan status Unknown
An employer asked whether its employee stock purchase plan was an ERISA benefit plan. EBSA said its stated terms provided neither welfare benefits nor retirement income or deferred pay, so it was…
Self-sheathing syringes and one-handed needle recapping Unknown
A syringe maker asked OSHA to review two needle safety systems. OSHA said it did not approve medical devices, but the described self-sheathing needle and one-handed recapping method were permitted…
OSHA enforcement at Energy Department contractor facilities Unknown
A congressman asked OSHA to investigate safety issues at Energy Department nuclear facilities. OSHA said government-owned, contractor-operated facilities were then exempt from its enforcement under…
Cytotoxic drug mixing in a pharmacy and the laboratory standard
A safety consultant asked whether pharmacy staff mixing cytotoxic drugs worked in a laboratory under OSHA's laboratory standard. OSHA said the described operation resembled a production process with…
Formaldehyde protection in gross anatomy laboratories
A medical college association asked how anatomy teaching labs should apply OSHA's formaldehyde rule without obstructing instruction. OSHA said protective equipment depended on each task and…
Forklift brake drawbar drag under later ANSI revisions
A forklift maker asked about a later consensus standard reducing brake drawbar drag from 30% to 25%. OSHA said its rule incorporated an older ANSI edition, but it would accept a newer, less…
Patient nurse call system outside OSHA worker safety jurisdiction
A communications installer asked OSHA about a hospital call system that might prevent a patient from signaling a new emergency. OSHA said the described problem concerned patient safety rather than…
Derby Association health trust as a MEWA Unknown
The request asked whether the Derby Association Trust was a MEWA. EBSA found that it served workers of separate employers, making it a MEWA open to state insurance regulation under ERISA. It did not…
Group Rental Insurance Plan medical trust as a MEWA Unknown
The request asked whether a rental-industry medical trust was a MEWA. EBSA found that it provided benefits to employees of separate employers and was a MEWA, so ERISA allowed state insurance…
Self-directed IRAs buying stock of custodian affiliate Unknown
An IRA custodian asked about participants buying stock of its parent company through self-directed IRAs. EBSA said purchases from the custodian itself would be prohibited sales under the cited rule;…
Alarm Association of Florida health plan as a MEWA Unknown
The request asked whether an alarm industry health plan avoided state insurance law through ERISA. EBSA concluded that it served employees of separate employers and was a MEWA, so state regulation…
Consumer products and hazard communication in veterinary clinics
A congressman asked whether a veterinary clinic needed safety sheets for common household products, including vinegar and starch. OSHA said products used with consumer-like frequency and duration…
Hazard communication duties for products imported into the United States
An overseas manufacturer asked when its products needed material safety data sheets for U.S. distribution. OSHA said the maker or importer had to assess foreseeable workplace exposure and provide…
Dry drilling jurisdiction between MSHA and OSHA Unknown
A congressman asked about hazards from dry drilling. OSHA said drilling directly related to mining ordinarily fell under the Mine Safety and Health Administration, while oil, gas, and water well…
Ventilation and alarms in ammonia refrigeration control rooms
A regional office asked about explosion and inhalation hazards in an ammonia refrigeration control room. OSHA said the unventilated room warranted a citation, while installing ventilation meeting…
Rescue skiffs for construction work over water
A construction industry group asked when a lifesaving skiff is immediately available for work over water. OSHA said the skiff should be able to retrieve a worker within three to four minutes at…
Standby rescue personnel for sour crude oil tank gauging
An oil company asked OSHA to revisit a prior interpretation requiring two standby people for open hatch gauging of sour crude tanks in immediately dangerous atmospheres. OSHA said it had reexamined…
Interim inspection policy for postal sorting ergonomics reports Unknown
OSHA gave field offices interim instructions for handling reports of cumulative trauma disorders at postal sorting facilities. It called for limited inspections and records checks while national…
Chemical cartridge respirator limits for organic vapors Unknown
OSHA sent regional offices guidance for selecting chemical cartridge respirators for organic vapors after NIOSH changed labeling. The attached OSHA guidelines set concentration and warning-property…
Poison center hotline as a supplement to safety sheets
A poison center asked whether its phone, fax, and computer service could support fixed and mobile workers' access to material safety data sheets. OSHA said a hotline could supplement the program if…
COBRA notices delegated by a plan administrator Unknown
The requester asked whether assigning COBRA continuation notices to another person could relieve it of the statutory notice duty. EBSA said the administrator remains responsible for seeing that…
Subpoenas and evidence in interstate unemployment appeals
ETA said people appealing an interstate unemployment claim must have a fair way to request evidence needed for the hearing. When evidence in another state is necessary and cannot be obtained…
Hepatitis B vaccination for new, probationary, and short-term workers Unknown
A dental association asked whether employees could begin work before completing hepatitis B shots and whether probationary or short-term staff qualified. OSHA said work could begin before the series…
Orthodontic wires as contaminated sharps
A dental association asked whether used orthodontic wires were sharps. OSHA said blood contamination of saliva during dental procedures was predictable and wire ends could puncture skin, so the…
Guarding and lockout for bowling pinsetting machines Unknown
A New Zealand safety official asked about U.S. rules for bowling pinsetting machines. OSHA said it had no pinsetter-specific regulation, but general machine guarding and lockout/tagout rules could…
Employee choice in HAZWOPER medical surveillance Unknown
An environmental employer asked whether HAZWOPER required employees to undergo medical exams. OSHA said employers had to make surveillance and consultation available, but the rule did not require…
Fire extinguisher upkeep in schools and school buses
A congresswoman asked about fire extinguisher servicing in schools and buses. OSHA said employers, rather than servicing vendors, were responsible for inspection, maintenance, and records under its…
Scaffold frame rung spacing as a de minimis violation Unknown
A consultant asked about ladder rung spacing on metal scaffold end frames. OSHA said its rules specified twelve inches, but it would treat spacing up to sixteen and a half inches as a de minimis…
Climbing-side clearance on fixed tower ladders
A contractor asked about head clearance on fixed ladders for radio towers. OSHA said its telecommunications rule did not specify the clearance, so the general fixed-ladder rule requiring thirty…
Silica hazard warnings for stone and concrete shipments
A stone industry association asked whether silica warnings belonged on shipments of stone and concrete. OSHA said hazard information could accompany vehicle shipping papers and that manufacturers…
Farmworker pesticide communication and field sanitation inspections Unknown
A farmworker legal group asked about field sanitation inspections and pesticide hazard information. OSHA said it planned to maintain inspections and had temporarily stopped enforcing the hazard…
Sharing safety sheets at multi-employer construction sites
A contractor group asked who must keep material safety data sheets at a shared construction site. OSHA said each contractor had to make sheets for chemicals that could expose other workers available…
Material safety data sheet duties of retail hardware stores
A hardware trade group asked how retailers should handle safety sheets for products sold to employers and consumers. OSHA said retail distributors selling hazardous chemicals to employers had to…
Formaldehyde controls in medical school anatomy laboratories
A medical college association asked whether private medical schools could feasibly meet OSHA's formaldehyde standard in gross anatomy laboratories. OSHA said controls were technically and…
CARE Trust as a multiple employer welfare arrangement Unknown
The request asked whether the Continental Association of Resolute Employers Trust was a MEWA and subject to state insurance regulation. EBSA found that it served workers of separate employers, so it…
Gwynedd Mercy College benefit plans as church plans Unknown
A Catholic college asked whether its employee benefit plans were church plans. EBSA found the college and plan administration associated with the Catholic Church through the sponsoring religious…
Uihlein Mercy Center benefit plans as church plans Unknown
A Catholic care center asked whether its three employee benefit plans were church plans. EBSA found the center and plan committee associated with the Catholic Church through the Sisters of Mercy, so…
Payment for prescription safety glasses Unknown
A worker asked whether the employer or employee had to pay for prescription safety glasses. OSHA said the cited protective equipment rules did not then assign the cost and described the matter as…
Salary deferrals in an unfunded top-hat plan Unknown
An employer asked whether allowing selected managers to defer part of their pay would make its nonqualified plan funded and subject the withheld amounts to an ERISA plan-assets regulation. EBSA said…
MDPhysicians employee benefit plan as a MEWA Unknown
The request asked whether the MDPhysicians employee benefit plan was a MEWA and could be regulated by the state. EBSA found that it served workers of separate employers and was a MEWA subject to…
Machine setup, production safeguards, and lockout procedures Unknown
A manufacturer asked how the lockout/tagout rule applied to routine machine setup and servicing. OSHA said alternative production safeguards could suffice when they protected workers from unexpected…
Escape breathing apparatus during hazardous waste site entry Unknown
A health and safety officer asked when hazardous waste site workers must carry an escape self-contained breathing apparatus. OSHA said initial entrants need an escape unit of at least five minutes…
Keeping unemployment appeals simple, speedy, and inexpensive
ETA warned that unemployment appeals can grow costly and technical when parties fear that the outcome will control a later case. It told state agencies to examine whether their hearings remain…
Flammable liquids and dip tank standards
A chemical company asked how OSHA's flammable liquid and dip tank rules applied to small tanks and testing. OSHA said dip tank coverage did not depend on tank volume and accepted ASTM flash point…
Missouri Pacific health association outside one ERISA plan Unknown
A railway employee health association asked whether it was an ERISA welfare plan. EBSA said neither a qualifying employer nor employee organization established or maintained the association program,…
Governmental status of the Washington Convention Center pension plan Unknown
EBSA concluded that the Washington Convention Center is a District of Columbia governmental agency or instrumentality, so its employee pension plan is a governmental plan excluded from ERISA Title…
Training for workers in uncontaminated hazardous waste site areas
The Army Corps of Engineers asked whether support and construction workers in uncontaminated areas of a hazardous waste cleanup site needed HAZWOPER training. OSHA said the rule did not cover…
Telecommunicated requests and responses for interstate wage transfers
ETA answered state agencies' questions about electronic requests and responses for combined wage claims. It said agencies should send available wages promptly, identify partial transfers, and send…
Release of calendar-year 1989 unemployment quality-control data Unknown
ETA gave states procedures and dates for releasing unemployment benefit quality-control results for calendar year 1989. It specified a database cutoff, annual report format, state narratives,…
Insurer-run accident and sickness program for unrelated employers Unknown
An insurer offered accident and sickness coverage through payroll deductions at unrelated employers. EBSA said the common program was not itself an ERISA employee welfare plan because the employers…
Fire brigade duties, respirators, and rescue
An OSHA regional office sought answers about incipient stage fire brigade duties and self-contained breathing apparatus. OSHA said those members should not enter smoke or toxic environments for…
Proposed coal-industry benefits trust and separate employer plans Unknown
A proposed trust would offer benefits to coal-industry employers through a trustee. EBSA said the trust was not itself an ERISA welfare plan because the employers lacked a genuine organization and…
State insurance oversight of a food-store benefits trust Unknown
Texas asked whether a group benefits trust covering workers of separate employers was a multiple employer welfare arrangement. EBSA said it was a MEWA and was subject to state insurance regulation…
How this guidance is useful
- See how the agency reads the law: An opinion letter shows how a state labor agency actually applied wage-and-hour law to a real employer's or worker's situation.
- Check the status before relying: Every page shows whether the document is still active or has been superseded, rescinded, or withdrawn, and when that status was last verified.
- Guidance, not law: These documents explain the agency's position but bind no court, and the agency can change its view. The official document linked on every page is the authoritative source.
- Research across states: Compare how different states treat the same question, from overtime and travel time to tips and independent-contractor status.
Browse guidance by state
This library covers 8 states plus federal guidance so far. Every document is checked against the agency's official source before it is published, so states are added as their labor departments' guidance is verified, not all at once. If your state is not listed yet, its labor department's own site is the place to check.