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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Fixed-obligation insurance separate accounts and plan assets Unknown
EBSA said insurance separate accounts maintained solely to support fixed contractual obligations did not hold ERISA plan assets when plan payments could not vary with account investment results.…
Alternative guardrail designs and state plan rules Unknown
An employer asked whether a variable railing arrangement could meet OSHA's general industry guardrail rule. OSHA said it could if it met the rule's top rail height, 200-pound strength, and…
Illinois bank insurance trust status undecided Unknown
EBSA declined to decide whether participating Illinois banks formed a bona fide employer group maintaining one ERISA welfare plan. The banks could elect most trust managers, but actual employer…
1983 Social Security amendments affecting UI
ETA explained 1983 Social Security amendments affecting state unemployment programs, including benefit rules, interest on advances, and FUTA provisions. ETA still lists the letter as continuing.
Northern States Power severance treated as pension Unknown
EBSA said the company’s severance benefits were an ERISA pension plan rather than a welfare severance program because payments were indirectly tied to retirement benefits, at least for older…
Eastern Air Lines investment bonus pension question Unknown
EBSA said the amended Eastern Air Lines investment bonus did not defer pay to employment termination by its express terms, and it did not disagree that the agreement lacked welfare benefits.…
Plastic observation windows for abrasive blasting
A blasting equipment maker asked whether plastic could replace required safety glass in observation windows. OSHA said screened, maintained plastic with equivalent strength and clarity would meet…
United Technologies plan leases and affiliate services Unknown
EBSA said a tenant’s arrangements with a United Technologies subsidiary under an absolute net lease did not involve a plan fiduciary dealing with plan assets under the cited self-dealing rule. It…
John Hancock affiliate fund-manager selection Unknown
EBSA said selecting an affiliate to manage the John Hancock plan’s fund investment did not itself violate the cited self-dealing rules when John Hancock paid its fee. Conflicts in the actual…
Bacardi health plans and union administrator Unknown
EBSA said the Bacardi clinic and Blue Cross arrangements were ERISA welfare plans if they were the medical plans in the company-union agreement. On the submitted facts, the union controlled the…
When hard hats are required
A member of Congress asked whether workers must always wear hard hats. OSHA said employers must assess each operation and worksite for potential head injury hazards and require suitable protection…
Security guards, sanitation, and workplace temperature
A member of Congress asked about safety conditions for security guards. OSHA said it had no specific security guard or workplace temperature standard, but its sanitation rule required adequate…
Oil-and-gas royalty plan pension status unresolved Unknown
EBSA could not conclude that Cibola Energy’s production royalty participation plan was outside ERISA pension status or a simple bonus plan. It cited the open-ended royalty pool and a vesting…
Accountants insurance trust and employer plans Unknown
EBSA said the New Jersey accountants association did not itself maintain an ERISA welfare plan through its insurance trust. Association membership was open regardless of employer status, and…
GIC annual reporting must reflect current assets Unknown
The Department rejected a proposed method of reporting a guaranteed investment contract that would amortize the former insurer's market value adjustment charge over the contract's term and inflate…
Body belts, safety straps, and lanyards for linemen
A safety equipment engineer asked which OSHA rules applied to body belts and lanyards used by linemen on aerial lifts. OSHA mapped the cited electrical work standard’s tests and hardware provisions…
Crane-mounted work platforms for personnel Unknown
A contractors’ association asked about work platforms attached to crane booms. OSHA said routine personnel carrier use required applicable design safeguards, including platform and ground controls.…
Ventilation and grounding of battery installations
A battery company asked about installation requirements. OSHA said storage battery areas must be ventilated to prevent explosive gas mixtures. It identified general equipment grounding rules but…
Model work-sharing legislation and partial benefits Unknown
ETA supplied model state legislation for short-time compensation and discussed improvements to partial unemployment benefits. Current status is unconfirmed.
New York unclaimed insurance proceeds law survives ERISA preemption Unknown
EBSA said New York’s law requiring insurers to report and turn over certain unclaimed policy proceeds was saved from ERISA preemption as insurance regulation. It relied on the submitted…
Instruction labels on step ladders Unknown
A member of the public asked about instruction and warning labels on a four-foot step ladder. OSHA said its ladder standards did not require manufacturers to attach such labels, though manufacturers…
Fire brigade protective clothing materials
A textile group questioned whether OSHA’s fire brigade clothing standard favored one synthetic fiber. OSHA said the rule allowed any material, natural or synthetic, that met its criteria. It also…
Insurer seed money transfer from separate accounts Unknown
EBSA said Lincoln Pension’s seed money in pooled separate accounts was not ERISA plan assets under section 401(b)(2) and its separate-account surplus treatment, so withdrawing excess seed money…
Cummins salary continuation is a payroll practice Unknown
EBSA said Cummins’ short-term salary continuation program was a payroll practice outside ERISA welfare-plan requirements because it paid no more than normal pay from the employer’s general assets…
Religious school coverage enforcement position Unknown
ETA stated its enforcement position concerning state unemployment coverage of private schools with a religious orientation. Current status is unconfirmed.
Wisconsin education insurance trust plan status Rescinded
On the representation that the organizations fully controlled the arrangement, the Department originally treated the Wisconsin Education Association Insurance Trust as a union-maintained ERISA…
Body belts and lanyards for electrical line work
A safety equipment engineer asked which fall protection standard applied to linemen on aerial booms. OSHA said the described ANSI belt and six-foot lanyard did not give equivalent protection for…
Location and access to workplace toilets
A worker asked how close workplace toilets must be. OSHA said its federal sanitation rule gives no specific distance, but employers must use reasonable judgment and provide free, unobstructed…
Emergency reverse control for mill roll rescues Unknown
A flooring manufacturer proposed an emergency reverse jog control to free workers caught in mill rolls. OSHA said its mill rule did not prohibit the concept and reversal could be appropriate in some…
Acceptance of JTPA training opportunities Unknown
ETA explained that qualifying training opportunities under the Job Training Partnership Act count as approved training for unemployment compensation purposes. Current status is unconfirmed.
State unemployment loans and interest changes Unknown
ETA explained federal amendments affecting state unemployment loan repayment, interest and tax-credit reductions. Current status is unconfirmed.
Guarding agricultural power take-off shafts
An agricultural equipment maker asked about guarding power take-off shafts. OSHA said both the shaft and its journal couplings needed protection under the farm equipment standard. An integral cone…
Weiser Lock assistance program is an ERISA welfare plan Unknown
EBSA said Weiser Lock’s employer-funded employee assistance program was an ERISA welfare plan because its counseling addressed health, health-related and mental-health problems that counted as…
John Hancock joint-property transition exemption Unknown
EBSA said a proposed sale of pre-ERISA jointly held mortgage and real-estate interests between a John Hancock separate account and general account could avoid the cited prohibited-transaction rule…
FUTA credits and state taxable wage bases
ETA explained state-law changes needed to preserve employers’ federal unemployment tax credits after increases in the federal taxable wage base. ETA still lists the letter as continuing.
General principles of employer experience rating
ETA explained federal standards for state employer experience-rating systems and the corresponding federal unemployment tax credits. ETA still lists the letter as continuing.
Louisville Gas savings program is a pension plan Unknown
EBSA said Louisville Gas and Electric’s voluntary savings program was an ERISA pension plan subject to Title I reporting and disclosure. The agency did not decide whether it was part of an existing…
Accounting firm training outside ERISA welfare status Unknown
EBSA said an accounting firm’s internal professional development courses were not an ERISA welfare plan and did not trigger Title I reporting and disclosure. The opinion concerns those in-house…
Audiotronics pension audit despite bank certification Unknown
EBSA said the Audiotronics profit-sharing plan still had to engage an independent accountant and include the accountant’s opinion in its annual report, despite bank-certified assets. The…
Rebsamen pension audit despite certified assets Unknown
EBSA said the Rebsamen pension plan could not skip its independent accountant merely because an insurer certified plan asset information. The certification could limit the accountant’s examination…
Citations for emergency plans and alarm systems Unknown
A lawyer asked how OSHA's fire protection rules interact with emergency action plans, prevention plans, and alarm systems. In its June 20 follow-up, OSHA changed its earlier citation approach: for a…
Closed-circuit breathing apparatus in IDLH and fire brigade use
OSHA reviewed test results for two BioPak closed-circuit breathing apparatus models. It told regional administrators that both remained acceptable as positive-pressure self-contained breathing…
Bank affiliate investment manager selection Unknown
EBSA said a bank’s appointment of its affiliate to manage trust assets did not itself violate ERISA’s fiduciary self-dealing rule. A conflict during the actual decision to retain the affiliate could…
Supplemental hazard labels on electrical equipment
An electrical manufacturers’ association asked about its warning label system. OSHA said the labels did not violate its rules, but they could only supplement required danger, caution, and safety…
Employer-linked life insurance payroll deductions Unknown
EBSA said a proposed life insurance payroll-deduction program was an ERISA welfare plan where an employer affiliate would reinsure the coverage and the employer’s role exceeded the limited safe…
Foreign pension scheme outside ERISA Title I Unknown
EBSA said the London and Manchester Group pension scheme qualified for ERISA’s foreign-plan exclusion under the described facts, even though it held or invested some assets in the United States. The…
Guarding power press flywheels Unknown
A tool and die company asked about guarding flywheels on power presses. OSHA said its general industry rules required a guard, with flywheels above work areas needing one strong enough to contain a…
Audiometer calibration and hearing conservation tests
An employer asked about audiometer calibration under the 1983 hearing conservation amendment. OSHA described required test frequencies and calibration checks, and said exhaustive calibration was…
Safety devices on compressed-air tool hoses
A contractor asked which hoses were covered by the construction pneumatic tool rule. OSHA said hoses exceeding one-half inch inside diameter needed a safety device at the supply source or branch…
Swing radius protection for drill and pile rigs Unknown
A drilling contractor asked how OSHA's crane swing radius barricade rule applied to drill and pile rigs that move constantly. OSHA said the rule applied but recognized barricading might be…
Guardrails and toeboards on antenna service platforms Unknown
An antenna equipment company asked OSHA to review guardrails and toeboards on an elevated service platform. OSHA said the illustrated design appeared to meet the intent of its general industry rule,…
Frank Russell real estate fund fiduciary roles Unknown
EBSA said the described trust company could serve as trustee and investment manager under the existing agreements once designated. Serving as named fiduciary with authority to appoint trustees or…
Equivalent injury recordkeeping forms for a railroad Unknown
A railroad asked whether its own injury forms and procedures could satisfy OSHA's recordkeeping rules. OSHA found two forms equivalent and accepted the third if specified physician, hospital, report…
IRA payroll deductions and employer influence Unknown
EBSA said buying county bonds did not alone disqualify the proposed IRA payroll-deduction program from ERISA’s exclusion. An employer’s delay in remitting deductions or influence over bank…
Crane handled personnel baskets as suspended platforms Unknown
A construction firm asked whether a crane handled personnel basket fell under OSHA's suspended work platform instruction. OSHA said it did if the basket met the instruction's design criteria, and…
Safety nets for bridge deck removal
A requester asked about fall protection under the construction safety net rule. OSHA said an employer must use a net when removing a bridge deck more than 25 feet above water or ground unless it…
Tax administrators pension as governmental plan Unknown
EBSA said the Federation of Tax Administrators staff pension was a governmental plan excluded from ERISA Title I because of substantial state sponsorship, funding and intergovernmental ties. It left…
Employer-run 403(b) custody program and ERISA Unknown
EBSA could not assure that Group Health’s proposed tax-sheltered annuity custody arrangement was outside ERISA pension-plan status. The employer had designed the program and retained approval powers…
Proof coil and high-test chain slings
An OSHA office evaluated a variance request involving proof coil and high-test chain slings. It said the sling rule did not specifically ban nonalloy chain, but chain makers recommended alloy steel…
Legal services benefits group plan status unresolved Unknown
EBSA declined to decide whether the legal-services employer group NEBO was a bona fide employer association because actual employer control was factual. Its benefit programs could be ERISA welfare…
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.